Redemption
by CrazyJan57
Summary: Ignacio De Soto reflects on his life after the death of Emissary Risendo. Based on NW Zorro also known as Family Channel
1. Prologue

**REDEMPTION**

Disclaimer – I don't own the rights, Zorro Productions Inc does - I just like to play with the characters.

Plot – Ignacio de Soto reflects on his life after the death of Emissary Risendo.

I had always preferred de Soto over Ramone because he had the potential to change his ways, especially at the end of the series. I was curious as to how he obtained the university scholarship when he had come from a poor farming family and that he had spent time in the Army too. I hope to answer those questions.

There is not much dialogue in the first half of the story as I was building up the background history of the de Sotos and it covers the major events in Ignacio's life. The story goes for 16 chapters + the prologue.

* * *

Prologue.

He was running. Running from something or someone, he didn't know what. All he knew was the semi-darkness, that it was bitterly cold, and a thick grey fog swirled around him. He was wheezing heavily, his heart pounded so fast that he thought it would burst at any second. He wanted to stop and rest but he couldn't, his legs kept pumping mercilessly on the hard surface, a surface that he couldn't see. Then he heard it. Voices, so many voices.

Male, female, children's voices all merged together along with a bizarre high pitched shrieking like some insane banshee out to get his soul. The sounds seemed to echo all around him, all shouting, crying, screaming and he knew that he had to get away from them or he would be lost forever. He would be lost in the confusion, lost to the soulless ghosts that haunted him.

In the distance he saw a light and he desperately wanted to reach it. He knew if he did, he would be safe from the voices, safe from the terrifying nightmare that he found himself in. So he ran harder, faster but as the light came closer, a voice separated itself from the others and wailed out in a terrible screech, which made his blood run cold.

"Stop...stop. You don't belong there, you belong to us, here in this place."

He shook his head. "No, NO."

That horrible voice screeched again. "You belong here, this is your destiny."

"No, no I don't believe you!" he yelled out at the strange voice. He started to slow down as though the voice was pulling him back towards the madness.

"Stop. You belong in the dark with us. You must stop running."

He shook his head. "No, no. Maybe I did belong here once but no more. I need to find..."

"There is nothing to find." wailed the voice. "It is all here with us, it will be okay, if you just stop running."

He saw a shadowy figure slowly emerge from the fog and he felt fear, felt that if he didn't run away, he would always stay in the darkness with the mad creatures that haunted it. So he ran harder and faster towards the light, he didn't care if his heart did burst, at least if he died, he wouldn't have to hear those voices anymore. He had to get away from this dreadful place.

"I must get to the light. I must." he told himself.

The shadowy figure laughed insanely as it kept pace with the running man. "You can't run from me."

He saw the figure move in front of him and slowly become solid and to his horror he found himself looking into his own face and he screamed.

Ignacio de Soto bolted upright in his bed, his heart pounding hard, he was gasping for breath, his eyes wide with fright, his white hair flattened by sweat, the bedsheets were crumpled and even one of his pillows had been tossed to the floor, all evidence of his terrible nightmare.

"Madre de Dios." his voice cracked by the feeling of terror of his dream, the dream that he has had three times in as many weeks. With trembling hands he threw back the covers and slowly stood up on unsteady legs. He felt as though he had been running for miles, his legs ached, his breathing was laboured and he felt utterly exhausted. He crossed to the wash stand and splashed water on his face.

He looked in the mirror and was shocked by his reflection. He saw a terrified old man staring back at him. Although he was only thirty-six years old, the strain of the last several weeks had aged him. There were more worry lines etched into his face, especially around his eyes and mouth. The furrows on his brow had deepened but what shocked him the most was the haunted look in his blue eyes. That look hadn't been there before the emissary's arrival and he didn't know if that look would ever go away. Never before had he felt real fear, fear for his very life at the hands of that madman.

As he grabbed the towel beside the wash basin and wiped his face dry, he saw the framed picture of Niccolo Machiavelli hanging on the opposite wall and yelled at it. "You were wrong." he crossed the room and angrily tore the large picture down. "You were wrong." he uttered again as he put his fist through the smug smile of his one time hero.

"Power, real power doesn't come from deceit or from brutish ways, nor does the end justify the means." he muttered at the damaged picture. His anger disappeared as he slumped down on his rumpled bed once again and reflected on the wasted years on chasing after a ghost, a ghost that defied his authority at every turn.

He snorted to himself. "What authority?" he muttered, the only authority he had was through fear and hate. Look at what that type of power had done to Risendo. It had created a monster.

"Is that what I am destined to become, a monster?" he uttered gloomily. He had seen a part, a rather large part of himself in Risendo. He had that same burning ambition, that same ruthlessness to get what he wanted, no matter what or who stood in his way and look where it ended for the Emissary, it ended in an early grave.

He felt remorse for having shot the unknown son of Don Alejandro de la Vega, if he had known of the blood relation between the two men, he would not have killed him. But he had no other choice. It was either that or watch Don Diego die at the hands of the emissary. The killing had laid heavily on his soul and he had visited the Padre a number of times in the weeks since then, in an effort to heal his wound.

And in doing so, he had confronted his own demons and he didn't like what he had found. The only reason he had gone to the de la Vegas was to steal Don Alejandro's best stallion and to flee the territory in order to save his own life. He was running away like the coward that he was and had left his loyal Sergeant to face the wrath of Risendo. That discovery made him reflect on his life.

Ignacio sighed and turned over on his side. "What have I achieved here? Nothing, I have achieved nothing." he muttered. He had been in a stalemate with his arch-enemy Zorro for the last couple of years and there was no sign, in the near future, of any change to the situation. The people disliked him, they didn't trust him and had no respect for him.

He had done none of the duties which were expected of his office, some of the pueblo buildings needed repair and painted, the school had been without a teacher for almost three months. The ruts in the roads needed to be smoothed out or at least a new route should have been paved out. Even the barracks was in need of renovation. But none of that had been done. He sighed again as he rolled over and laid on his back, staring up at the ceiling.

"Why, how had it gone so wrong?" he asked himself.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Ignacio de Soto Morales was born was on 5th June 1786 in a small farming community on the outskirts of San Fernada, Cadiz, Spain. He was the fifth of seven children born to Juanita Morales and Esteban de Soto but was one of only three that survived to adulthood. He had an older brother, Tomas and a younger sister, Rosita.

Esteban de Soto was an angry and frustrated man, who blamed his own father for their misfortunes. Santos de Soto had owned a small but profitable farm on the outer reaches of El Puerto de Santa Maria, Cadiz. But to the dismay of his family, Santos fell in with the local squire, Don Fernando Castillo, who encouraged him in the destructive course of gambling and drinking. Santos often gambled amongst his peers and his winnings usually matched his loses but one night, during a formal dinner party at the Castillo's elegant hacienda, the prize money was larger than he had ever seen and he decided to try his luck at the card table. He started off well enough, then he had a streak of bad cards and had lost what money he had on him.

Antonia de Soto was appalled as she watched her husband desperately trying to win back what he had lost, along with the ever growing prize money. She urged him to stop but Santos just waved her off, believing that he could not lose and besides the amount was more than what he would earn in three years of harvests. With his horrified wife looking on, Santos made the fateful decision to place his own farm up as collateral and lost everything on a single draw of the cards.

In the end Castillo had won the game and therefore had won the profitable de Soto's farm. He was rather pleased by this new addition to his already large estate. He owned the adjoining land to de Soto's and he had been eyeing off the neighbouring property for some time now, it was good land on reliable water source.

It could be said that Castillo had known about de Soto's gambling problems and had encouraged him further, with a hope that he would eventually make a fatal mistake and as a result he would gain the coveted land without paying a single peso, but nothing could be proved. And even if it could be proven, it would never go beyond unpleasant whispers against Castillo. For every man was responsible for their own actions and unless he had held a gun to de Soto's head, it would just be considered bad judgement by de Soto, for he should have known better than to gamble away his lands.

Santos, Antonia and their children were forced from their farm, one week after he had lost it but to Santos, the humiliation and the disgrace of losing the farm that had been in the de Soto family for four generations, was too great and he did the only honourable action that was left to him. He left behind his widow and five children ranging in ages from fifteen to three, with Esteban the eldest.

The grieving family loaded their wagon with their possessions; they sold off the items that they couldn't bring with them and started their journey back towards Antonia de Soto's parent's home but she soon realised that her parents wouldn't be able to house another six people on top of the five other family members livng with them. She didn't want to burden her parents any further than she had to and soon found lodgings for herself and her children.

Antonia only had a limited amount of money from the sale of the larger pieces of furniture, so they were forced to find work. Esteban and his younger brother Carlos found employment on a nearby farm as labourers, while their mother and their younger sisters took in washing and sewing. The money earned was enough to pay the rent, to feed and clothed them but not much else. Antonia had to learn to sew from scratch, having been brought up in a respectable family and then married into the well-off DeSoto family, she had only learnt about the finer points of needlework and lace-making. There had been no need for sewing, of how to make clothes, they had servants to do that for her. But now she had no choice. There was no money to buy material, so she used what she had.

She came to realise just how wasteful their previous lives had been. Too many times they had tossed away a shirt or a dress after only one wear because it was not fashionable to be seen in the same thing twice. But now Antonia re-used shirts, trousers, skirts and even undergarments and once her older children outgrew them, it was passed down to the younger ones. At first, her attempts at making clothes for her younger children failed miserable but it only made her more determined to make the most of their terrible situation. Living like this was a comedown for the entire de Soto family; from going to small landowners to virtually poor peasants because of an unlucky draw of cards, was hard for them to cope with, especially for Esteban.

Esteban was angry, hurt at his father's betrayal of them. He had lived a life of relative ease, knowing that one day, the farm would be his, but now that he had to work for someone else, as a common labourer, it grated on his nerves. He didn't like it and promised himself that one day, he would regain what his father had lost.

The de Soto family settled into their new life and at first, the years passed slowly as they came to terms with their situation but Antonia urged her children to think of the future and to plan for a better life. They all could read and write as well as mathematics. She made sure that her daughters knew how to do needlepoint and lace-work and urged them all to work hard, to keep themselves respectable, to be well mannered and not to allow their misfortunes to make them bitter about life. For she knew that in order to get ahead, they had to be seen as a respectable, educated family not as ill-bred, ill-mannered peasants.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

When Esteban was twenty-one, a new family, by the name of Morales, moved into the area. They had bought the old Gomez's place, which neighboured alongside the farm which Esteban and his brother worked as labourers. Senor Domingo Morales was a widower with three children, Alfredo, Carlos and Juanita and they had come into the district under mysterious circumstances from the northern province of Huesca. No-one knew the reason why they had moved into the area but there were rumours of a duel, a woman, a death but the Morales family did not enlighten the good citizens of the district.

Juanita Morales had just turned eighteen and the moment Esteban saw her, he was smitten by the lovely young senorita. She was a slender young woman, slightly shorter than him, had light sandy coloured hair, almost blonde, with blue eyes. He knew straight away that he had to have her but what chances would he have with her, he was just a farm hand with no real prospects and she was a landowner's daughter.

Antonia urged her son to consider a match with her, for she knew that if the family was to regain their prosperity, her children would have to marry well. She did not want her children to remain as poor peasants, she wanted a better life for them, even if she couldn't have that life for herself. But Esteban was more a practical person than his mother for he realised that Juanita's father would not approve of the match unless he was able to support her to the level of comfort that she was used to. So he worked harder than before, he saved what money he could and by the time Juanita became of age, Esteban had been promoted to foreman and one of the advantages with his new position was separate living quarters isolated from the others, which were large enough to house a small family. Surely Senor Morales would not deny him marriage to his lovely daughter.

Juanita had noticed the young handsome labourer from the neighbouring farm and she felt a strange giddiness every time she saw him. Her heart fluttered at the looks of admiration, of hope that the young man gave her. She knew that her father would not approve of him, considering the story of his family's demise but she found that she didn't care about that, for she was in love. But she wasn't all that naïve, she knew that by marrying her, Esteban would gain the advantages of connecting himself with her family but she saw his potential to become more than what he was. She saw his ambition to recover what his family had lost and that excited her. She too wanted more from the life that her family now lived. Her own chances of marrying well, had disappeared the moment her brother dishonoured their family by his affair with the local official's wife and the ensuing duel of honour.

One Sunday after church, Juanita and Esteban met quite by accident, at least it was accidental on his part. She had wanted to meet the handsome young man for some time now and she realised that the best way would be after church, where no-one would suspect anything. Esteban was startled when Juanita joined him on the walk outside the church and when his eyes met hers, he felt his heart leap in his chest at her beauty, at the invitation in her sky blue eyes. But before he could say anything, Senor Morales called for his daughter.

The following Sunday, Juanita joined him once more on the walk down the aisle and outside the church. It happened the next Sunday but this time, she shyly pressed a note into his hand, which he read later and to his astonishment that she wanted to see him. Slowly a friendship, then a romance grew between them. They courted secretly until she was of age, when he asked her father's permission to marry her.

Domingo Morales felt that his daughter deserved better than some farm hand, whose father had destroyed the de Soto name by gambling his lands away but the prospects for his children were limited and so he grudgingly gave his approval to the marriage. As part of her dowry, he found them a position as tenant farmer in a neighbouring town and he paid for their first quarterly rent. That was all he was willing to do for his future son-in-law. The rest would be up to them.

Antonia was pleased for her eldest son, it was exactly what she had hoped for, a step towards regaining their heritage. He may not own the land, yet, but at least he was his own boss insofar as keeping any and all profits he made, once the rent was paid. She had high hopes for her eldest son.

Esteban was also aware of the importance of this beginning. It was a small step towards a better future. The land that he was now working was fertile, had good water supply and with the high prices that the crops were bringing in, he believed that within several years, he would have saved enough funds to buy a place of his own.

Juanita and Esteban settled quickly into their new life together and for the first several years they were happy, the harvests were plentiful and both saved what money they could and over time their funds grew into a nice nest egg. They had two children, with another on the way and everything seemed perfect for the de Sotos. But nothing lasts forever.

Five years after their marriage, a farm across the other side of the river came up for sale. Esteban and Juanita discussed the pros and cons of placing an offer for the property. It was a much larger farm than what they were looking for and therefore their funds were short of the asking price but Domingo offered them a loan for the difference. He had come to see his son-in-law as a hard working man and it was simply to good an offer not to take up.

The young couple were grateful for the assistance and arranged to meet with the owner but to their dismay, the prosperous farm had already been sold to a wealthy family in Madrid at twice the sale price. The owner was apologetic, he had come to respect the de Sotos and if he had known they were interested in his farm, he would have come to them sooner but the amount he was offered was too good to refuse.

Esteban was frustrated at the missed opportunity. He had a feeling that the new owner would probably not even come to stay on the farm, that he wouldn't take the time to nurture the land and he was right. The new owner stayed in Madrid and advertised locally for a position of manager to run the farm.

Juanita wanted her husband to take the position of manager, the salary was better than what they were earning from their crops and she tried to tell him that being the estate manager for a wealthy banker, would bring more attention to them, which in turn would bring more opportunities of advancement. But Esteban was obstinate, he never wanted to work for someone else, he wanted to own a farm himself and believed that this was the way to advancement. He would wait until he could buy their own place.

So in the end the de Sotos stayed where they were, as tenant farmers.

The next year, their harvest was low as a drought swept across area and it continued into the following year and into the next. It was the worst drought in almost twenty years and it lasted for five years. The de Sotos had to use their funds in order to survive, funds that would have bought their own farm. With the drought came disease and death. They buried three of their children before the drought broke.

During this time Esteban became embittered with life and his lack of advancement. His dream of regaining his family's honour disappeared as the years went on. He blamed others for his failure, he blamed the wealthy elite who took his fathers landholdings by deceit, the wealthy merchant who had stolen the farm he was meant to buy. He began to believe that he should have taken what he wanted, just as the wealthy had done for generations.

Juanita had become disappointed with her life, with her marriage. She had high hopes of a wonderful life with Esteban and of their future together but she had seen his ambition, that spark of zeal to have a better life for them, fade away to nothing. Their love for each other had become indifferent, the passion of their earlier years, gone. Her heart had broken as she buried her children in the hard ground and promised herself that even if she couldn't have the life she longed for, she would give her future children a better chance that she had herself.

So it was in this atmosphere of bitterness and disappointment that Ignacio was born.


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Ignacio learnt from an early age to take what he wanted without regard for the feelings of others, including his younger sister. It was one Christmas morning when Ignacio was ten years old, he snatched his sister's present from her hands.

"That's mine, give it back." Rosita cried out.

"Come and get it then." he grinned as she tried to get her present back but he held it high above his head.

"Mama!" Rosita rushed to her mother. "Ignacio won't give back my present." she wailed in her mother's arms.

Juanita placed her arm around her upset daughter and frowned at her son. "Give Rosita's present back Ignacio."

"But..."

"But nothing, give it back, now Ignacio." she raised her voice.

Ignacio sighed. "Okay." he grumbled as Rosita ran up to him, grabbed her gift and then poked her tongue out at him. He growled and made to chase after her but she squealed and ran back to the safety of their mother's skirts, who frowned again at her son.

Esteban chuckled. "Juanita, it's just some harmless fun between siblings."

She shook her head. "Not to Rosita it wasn't."

He shrugged. "Surely your brothers teased you when you were younger."

"Si, they did, so I know how she feels."

"Don't worry about, he will grow out of it."

But Ignacio didn't grow out of it, in fact he felt encouraged to do it again the following year, much to the amusement of his father and it continued for a number of years afterwards. Juanita was dismayed at this bullying, she hated to see her daughter in tears every Christmas and tried to stop it but Esteban continued to laugh it off, saying that it was simply teasing and that the present had always been given back to Rosita later.

The bullying of his younger sister wasn't enough for Ignacio, who craved his parent's attention. His elder brother Tomos had farming in his blood and was often praised, not only by his parents but also by the members of their community for his understanding of the land and of animals. Even at a such a young age of nineteen, he knew when to leave fields fallow for a season or two to allow the fertile land time to recover and he came to understand the weather patterns, when the best time to plant crops to give them the best yield they could get.

While the youngest, Rosita, was spoilt by their mother. Juanita wanted her daughter to have a better life than she had. And to do that, Rosita needed education. While Juanita knew how to read and write, they all could, and she taught them all she knew, she decided to enlist the help of the local padre in teaching her more about geography, mathematics, history, while she continued to teach her the finer points of tatting, sewing and ensure good, polite manners.

So while Tomos and Rosita received attention from their parents, Ignacio was almost overlooked in their family. He had no real interest in farming and often came home from school with a black eye or a bleeding nose. He often bullied the younger children but as with all bullies, once someone stands up to them, they usually run away.

It was on a one hot, summer afternoon that Ignacio's life changed forever.

Ignacio had skipped school once again and he was bored. He was tall for his age, his slender frame had a wiry strength, his hair was fair, like his mothers, his blue eyes could change from friendly to outright hostility in seconds. As he came across a group of young children playing with a ball in the dusty street, he grinned wickedly, strode up to them and quickly grabbed the ball away from them.

But as the children shouted at him, an older teen came out from behind a shed. "Hey de Soto what are you doing? Give it back to them." he called out.

Ignacio felt his heart stop as he looked at the older youth. He was the same height as him but he was twice as heavy, especially in the shoulders. But he wasn't going to let this youth bother him. "And if I don't." he called out.

The youth took several steps closer. "Then I guess I will have to make you." he said threateningly.

But Ignacio wouldn't back down. "Yeah, you and whose army." he called back with a bravado that he didn't feel.

The older boy grinned widely. "I don't need an army de Soto, I can take you on with one arm tied behind my back."

Ignacio saw the easy stance of the youth, saw him clinch and unclench his fist, he was ready to fight him and he swallowed nervously. He knew he wouldn't be able to win against such a larger opponent so he backed down. He let the moment stretch out as long as he thought possible and then he tossed the ball back to the children and moved away.

The youth laughed and called out. "de Soto you are a bully and a coward, someday someone will teach you a lesson you will never forget."

Ignacio heard the comment and walked away with his head held high, he didn't want anyone to know that he was hurt by those words.

* * *

That evening after dinner, Ignacio was called into his father's room. He felt rather terrified, usually a visit to the room meant punishment for some misdeed, but not this time. This time was different.

As his son stood in front of him, Esteban looked at Ignacio for the first time in a long time and he saw a mirror image of himself at that age. Ignacio had the same anger, the same arrogance, and the same aspiration to have a better life. Esteban knew it was the right time to discuss his son's future. Ignacio had no interest in farming and didn't want his son to become lazy, to always expect everything to be handed to him.

"Ignacio, it's time we talked about your future." Esteban said.

He frowned slightly. "My future?"

"Si, I've decided that you should join the military, most likely the Army."

Ignacio was dumbfounded by what his father had said. Never in a million years would he dream of joining the military. "The Army but why father?"

Esteban shrugged. "You have no interest in farming or anything else for that matter. The military will give you a purpose in life, other than just aimlessly wandering around."

"But the Army, you can't be serious father." he cried out.

Esteban frowned. "Remember who you are speaking to."

Ignacio paled at his father's cold tone. He knew better than to speak up against him when he spoke in that tone. "I'm sorry." he said contritely as he stared at the floor.

Esteban nodded. "Ignacio, I see a great future for you, you are smart, you have ambition and you won't get what you want by staying here in this small community. All you have to do is go out there and take what you are destined for. The army is a step in the right direction, it will open up many more opportunities for advancement." He paused and looked at his son with some regret. "Unfortunately, I don't have the cash to buy you a commission so you will have to enlist as an ordinary soldier."

Ignacio gaped at his father. "But...but I'm too young to enlist father." trying to convince his father not to go ahead with this. He didn't want to join the military.

Esteban shook his head. "Not really, there have been younger recruits than yourself. The army is taking on new recruits later in the week. So you have a couple of days to enjoy yourself before you sign up." he turned away and began to sort through the paperwork on his desk.

Ignacio knew that the interview was at end and left his father's presence, trembling with dread. He had hoped to continue living at the farm, not enlisting in the army.

Four days later, Ignacio de Soto Morales, enlisted in the Spanish Army at the tender age of sixteen, in the year 1802.

* * *

At first Ignacio hated the military, hated its enforced discipline for even the slightest mistake. Being the youngest of the new recruits he was subjected to bullying, he was given the worst duties. It seemed that the Sergeant loved to give him latrine duty every other day and kitchen duties the other days. But he soon learnt about power and how to wield it. He saw how some of senior Sergeants toadied up to their officers, while at the same time they bullied the men under their command. He saw that the officers did nothing to stop the Sergeant's behaviour, which encourage them even more. Slowly he began to emulate them.

He took his father's advice and learnt everything he could, both good and bad. He became a good shot with both musket and pistol, he grasped battle tactics with not much difficulty, much to the consternation of the older veterans, who thought that De Soto was an arrogant upstart.

de Soto took whatever punishment was meted out to him with an outward appearance of boredom but underneath he fumed with anger. One day they would all know his power and then they would quake in fear, he promised himself. His father was right, the Army was only a stepping stone to a better life. He didn't know what that was at the moment but he knew he was destined for something better than an ordinary soldier.

The first time that Ignacio killed an enemy of Spain was in a skirmish with French troops, some three years after his enlistment. He felt real fear at the thought of going into battle and when his patrol came across several French troopers, his Sergeant ordered an immediate attack. At the sounds of gunfire, he froze for a moment, while his comrades rushed through the scrub and opened fire on the enemy. But he quickly moved further forward and slightly to the left of where the battle was taking place, he had seen a large boulder from which he could take cover and with musket balls wizzing past him, he made it to relative safety of the rocks without being wounded.

He felt sick as he heard the cries, shouts and moans from the wounded soldiers. He looked around desperately, to see if there was any other way he could get away from the battle but he was pinned down with sporadic musket fire. He wanted to flee for his life but he knew if he did, he would be charged with desertion and cowardice and would end up in front of a firing squad. Preservation of his own life was more important than death by his comrades and yet at the same time, he needed to move further away from the battle without anyone getting suspicious.

Ignacio crept from where he had taken cover and began moving towards the trees to the left of his position. When he reached the tree line, he was stunned by what he found and it was only his training that saved his life. For amongst the trees, several French troops had been placed as a secondary ambush site. His reflexes were fast and he raised his musket and fired without thinking, killing the French soldier instantly.

A second French soldier turned and fired his pistol as the same time as Ignacio pulled out his pistol and fired. Once the smoke cleared, the second Frenchman lay dead on the ground and Ignacio was wounded in the shoulder. He felt such burning pain, that he had collapsed to his knees, his hand to his shoulder in an effort to stem the bleeding. It was only then he realise that he wasn't alone.

As Ignacio stared into the frightened eyes of his opponent, he noticed how young he was. The French trooper seemed younger than himself and when he heard his comrades coming his way, he saw fear as well as tears beginning to form in the youth's eyes and took pity on him. It wasn't his fault that he had been sent to Spain to fight in a losing war.

"Go." Ignacio said but the frightened boy didn't understand. "Go, go." Ignacio waved his hand in the direction of the trees behind them.

This time the boy understood. "Merci, Merci Monsieur." he whispered and fled.

Several weeks later Ignacio was decorated for his single handed action in preventing the second ambush and therefore saving lives. Only he knew the real reason why he had moved in that direction and it had nothing to do with saving his comrades. He took advantage of his treachery and rose quickly through the ranks until he made Sergeant.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Sergeant Ignacio de Soto was currently stationed in Barcelona and had now been in the Army for eight years. By this time he knew all the tricks, all the excuses used by lazy soldiers and he tolerated no idleness from his troops. It was during this time that he met the beautiful wife of his commanding officer, Colonel Vicente de Alvaro.

Doña Carolina de Alvaro was a young, wealthy and a very bored military wife, who loved everything she could get from life and flirted outrageously with her husband's fellow officers. She was not in love in Vincente, it had been an arranged marriage with the older officer. Vincente was fifteen years older than her, who had been a close friend to her family and had never married.

Carolina soon discovered the real reason for his reluctance to marry and ever since then, they had agreed to a certain freedom within their marriage. As long as she gave him a male heir, to ensure the future generation of the de Alvaro and their wealth, she was free to pursue other interests as was he. She was shocked at first but soon found her freedom thrilling. She had given her husband his heir, in the first year of their marriage and even since, they both enjoyed their liberty and as long as each was discreet, there would be no reproach for their behaviour.

When the de Alvaro's moved back to Barcelona, she met up with some of her old friends, who had no problems with her behaviour, in fact a number of them were having liaisons of their own. But Carolina was bored with her affairs, she wanted something more, something different. She wanted some excitement.

One warm afternoon, Carolina was at the barracks watching a graduation ceremony with two of her friends, Doña Elvira and Doña Teresa, when she noticed a tall, fair-haired, rather good looking Sergeant, whose stance showed a slight arrogance about him.

Doña Elvira noticed and shook her head. "Really Carolina, you must be feeling low if you are staring at a common soldier like that."

Doña Teresa looked in the same direction. "Si, you wouldn't be considering him Carolina, I mean there are plenty of young handsome officers to choose from, there's no need to go to the lower ranks."

Carolina sighed. "You know I am a little tired of the pompous officers, they are all the same but..." she stopped.

The two ladies exchanged a knowing look and shrugged.

"He's just a common soldier Carolina, what would he know about our class?" Elvira repeated.

Teresa snorted delicately. "You could always educate him in the ways of society."

She turned her attention back to the Sergeant. "Perhaps." She was selective about whom she had liaisons with, she had to ensure the gentleman's silence to protect both herself and her husband. In ten years of marriage, she had flirted with many men but had only taken three lovers, none lasting for longer than two months. Before she would make her decision, she wanted to meet him first.

* * *

It was a week later that she got her chance. She was on the way to visit her husband in his office, when she came across the fair-haired Sergeant bawling out a new recruit.

"You will stand in the middle of the grounds, in full kit until I tell you otherwise, understand recruit?" he shouted.

"Si Sergeant." replied the hapless recruit.

"Well just don't stand there gaping at me, get going NOW!" he roared.

"Si Sergeant." the young trooper fled.

"What has the poor fellow done to deserve your wrath Sergeant...Sergeant?" a soft feminine voice came from behind him.

He turned around and found himself looking at a tall, auburn haired, beautiful woman. "de Soto, Ignacio de Soto ma'am." he bowed slightly.

"Well Sergeant De Soto, what was his crime?" she smiled at him.

Ignacio smiled back, although a little wary, he knew who she was. "Just a minor infringement ma'am, nothing for you to worry about."

Carolina nodded. "I guess I don't have to bring it up with my husband then?"

"No ma'am, there's no need to involve the Colonel, for such a small incident." he stared intently into her blue eyes and she stared back.

"I'm glad, my husband is a busy man. Well Sergeant de Soto, I won't keep you any longer, you must have plenty of work to do. Perhaps we shall meet again."

Again they stared at each other. "Perhaps we shall ma'am."

Carolina nodded. "Goodbye Sergeant."

"Goodbye ma'am."

Ignacio followed her with his eyes and thought hard. The reputation of the Colonel's beautiful wife was known in the barracks but the rumours of her liaisons were only with wealthy officers, never with lower ranks. He frowned slightly as he walked towards the firing range, did she want a liaison with him or was he simply reading too much into it? He shook his head, he couldn't imagine that she wouldn't lower herself to take a common soldier as her lover.

Carolina thought about the Sergeant as she walked away. He was younger than she first thought, that fair hair which could almost pass for white, had deceived her. She had seen more handsome men before but he was definitely good looking, he seemed to be in his early twenties and to achieve the rank of Sergeant so fast gave her an idea of his ability or at least his ambition. He spoke politely enough to her and kept direct eye contact, which someone of his rank would never do. She did notice the slight arrogance in his stance, as though he wasn't easily impressed by her position. He would be a challenge to tame that was for sure, she thought to herself. She smiled as she entered her husband's office and decided to meet again with Ignacio de Soto to make her final decision.

* * *

A week and half later Carolina had another chance meeting with Ignacio. Her mare had thrown a shoe and she had bought her horse to the army blacksmith and just as the blacksmith began his work, Ignacio walked by on his way to the stables.

"Ah Sergeant De Soto isn't it?" she said softly.

Ignacio turned at the soft feminine voice and bowed his head slightly. "Yes ma'am." again he looked directly into her eyes without flinching. "Is there something wrong with your horse, ma'am?"

Carolina smiled warmly. "Si, she threw a shoe as we rode through Ciutadella Park. Do you ever ride through Ciutadella, Sergeant?"

Ignacio shook his head. "No ma'am. I don't have a lot of time for such activities."

She boldly took a step closer. "That is a shame Sergeant, you never know who you might meet in the park." She had decided to have a flirtation with the young soldier and if it developed further, well she wouldn't be averse to taking him to her bed.

He raised an eyebrow in speculation of her words, did she mean?

She continued. "I exercise my horse every Tuesday and Fridays in the park and sometimes catch up with old friends, sometimes meet new ones."

Ignacio swallowed hard, felt his pulse race as the realisation hit him. She did want him, he mused to himself. Well he wouldn't be unwilling to amuse himself for a while with her. "It's good to know that you exercise your horse regularly."

Carolina nodded. "I assume that you would exercise your horse within the grounds of the barracks, perhaps a change of scenery would do you good. I mean you wouldn't want your horse to become bored with the same route all the time."

He looked her straight in the eye and said without flinching. "It is sound military tactics to train in different locations."

She felt a tiny shiver of excitement of his hidden acceptance. She had a feeling that a liaison with Ignacio de Soto was exactly what she needed.

Then she saw that the blacksmith had finished. "I won't keep you from your duties Sergeant, perhaps we shall meet again." she smiled at him.

"Perhaps we will, ma'am."

Again they stared at each other, knowing what the other wanted.

"Adios Sergeant."

"Buenos dias ma'am."


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Two days later Ignacio felt like a fool as he rode through the park. He had arrived thirty minutes ago and although he had seen several prominent citizens, he hadn't seen her. As he walked his horse along the pathway, he decided that he would only wait another ten minutes and then he would leave. He thought about Carolina de Alvaro and knew that even if he didn't have a liaison with her, that just knowing her would place him within her circle of friends. At least he hoped it would. She was very influential and he planned to take full advantage of it. But the longer he waited in the large gracious park, the more his temper rose

Carolina was late and she was anxious, she had a feeling that Sergeant de Soto was not the type of man to be kept waiting. Her husband had decided to have a dinner party the night before without telling her. The party had gone well into the night and she had retired to her rooms later than normal. She was over an hour late when she finally made it to the park and soon she saw the Sergeant up ahead. He had stopped and was grazing his horse on the lush green shoots of the lawn beside the pathway. She smiled to herself, he had a lot to learn; one simply does not graze their horse in the park.

"Sergeant de Soto, what a pleasant surprise, I didn't know you come riding here." she smiled innocently.

Ignacio turned his head at the soft feminine voice and bowed his head slightly. "Ma'am, I thought to have a change of location to exercise my horse but somehow it's not what I expected." he replied coldly. He was angry, at her, at himself, he had stayed in the park long after he had decided to leave.

It was then, that she noticed how furious he was and it stunned her. Normally a gentleman would hide his anger from a lady especially in public but his feelings were very close to the surface and it was as though he didn't care if she saw his temper. Again she was struck by the difference in their stations in life. "Sergeant I am sorry for my lateness. I will offer no excuses as I know that you would not appreciate them."

Ignacio stared long and hard at her before he slowly raked his eyes over her curvaceous body. She was older than him by eight or nine years but she was still a beautiful but somewhat arrogant woman, her clothes was immaculate and of the latest fashion. His heart pounded faster in his chest at the thought of taming this Doña. He raised his eyes back to hers and was surprised but pleased to see a slight flush on her face and decided then that he would forgive her, this time.

"Well since we are here now, perhaps we can ride together for a time. I have to return back to the barracks by midday." he smiled at her.

Carolina chuckled lightly. "Then let me escort you part of the way Sergeant." she had felt her cheeks burn at his intense scrutiny. No man had the boldness to openly stare at her like that, considering that they only had two previous meetings.

They urged their horses into a slow pace back towards the entrance of the park.

After awhile Carolina smiled. "I notice that you are riding a mare, Sergeant."

Ignacio nodded. "I have found that mares are easier to ride, ma'am." he gave her an intense look that she couldn't mistake his meaning.

She understood perfectly. "I see, but I always preferred stallions myself. Although sometimes they can become too restless."

"That depends on the stallion doesn't it. Besides not all stallions can be broken."

Carolina chuckled at the hidden challenge in his words. "That's true Sergeant but I believe that all stallions can be broken, you just have to find the right method."

He shook his head and chuckled, he was enjoying the banter. "But you must never break the stallion's spirit otherwise he would be no use to you or to anyone else for that matter."

"Si, that's why you need to find the balance between bending him to your will or making him too wild. If that happened, he would have to be destroyed." she too was enjoying their flirting.

Ignacio snorted. "We wouldn't want that to happen, would we?"

"No, we wouldn't."

Again they gazed at each other intently, with growing admiration and desire.

Carolina cleared her throat. "Well Sergeant, this is where we must part company, but you would be most welcome to visit my hacienda anytime. We have large stables with several stallions for you to ride."

"And mares too?" he asked with a smile on his face.

She smiled back. "Of course, if that is your desire."

Ignacio grinned wickedly. "Amongst other things."

Carolina chuckled, dios he's good, she thought to herself. "Buenas dias, Sergeant."

He bowed his head slightly "Buenas dias, ma'am." he replied as he watched her ride away. He grinned as he urged his horse on and found himself looking forward to their next meeting. She could do a lot for him if he played his cards right. And as for taking her to bed, it was secondary to his ambitions but he was delighted that for once he wouldn't have to pay for the privilege.

Carolina was thrilled by the prospect of the coming liaison. She knew without a doubt that she would take him to her bed, she also knew that he would be able to take her like no other. She felt no guilt or shame just excitement. She was no longer bored.

* * *

It was almost three weeks before Ignacio could take up her offer to visit the hacienda and its stables. Not only did he have to wait to get leave but he also had to make sure that her husband would not there at the same time. It would have proved highly embarrassing for all concerned. He knew how important it was to keep it secret, his own life would be at risk if the colonel found out.

So it was on a Sunday afternoon just prior to siesta time when Sergeant Ignacio de Soto rode to the de Alvaro hacienda which was situated on the far left hand side of Montjuic. It was a large estate, with large shady trees lining the driveway up to the hacienda. It was a large wide hacienda and Ignacio appreciated the sleek lines, it was the type of home he wanted to own.

"Ah Sergeant de Soto, isn't it? I was told that you wanted to see our horses." A soft voice came from behind him.

He turned around and nodded politely at the beautiful woman. "Si, ma'am, I am interested in thoroughbreds and I might be willing to invest in a stallion."

"Or a mare, perhaps." her eyes bright with teasing and excitement.

His heart pounded hard with his own anticipation of what was to come. "Si, perhaps a mare and I was told that you and your husband have the best stables in the area to inspect."

Carolina nodded. "Gracious Sergeant. If you give your horse to Manuel here, I will show you to our stables."

Ignacio dismounted, handed the reins to an older man and followed Carolina towards the stables. They chatted about horses until they reached the long building that housed the de Alvaro horses.

When they reached the far end of the stables and he knew they were alone and away from ears of the servants, Ignacio pulled Carolina into an empty stall and kissed her forcefully. He thrust his hot tongue between her lips and plunged deep into her mouth to explore her roughly, sliding his moist tongue along her teeth, the roof of her mouth, mated with her own tongue, plunged deeper before started over again. He had wanted to do that the first time he saw her and he felt his lower body began to stir

Carolina was too stunned by his swift actions that she didn't realise what had happened until she felt his hot moist tongue inside her mouth. She pushed back and tore her mouth away and slapped him hard across the face. "How dare you! I am not one of your tavern whores that you can have your way with. You are no gentleman, Senor." she hissed angrily at him.

To her amazement he chuckled. "That is exactly why you asked me here. You want to be treated this way."

"Why you..." she fumed as she raised her hand again but Ignacio saw it and stopped her.

"You will not strike me again." he said calmly. "I know exactly why you want me, because you are bored with those fops of your own class and you need a real man to satisfy you."

Carolina was furious at him. "And you're the man to do that, I suppose."

"I know I am and so do you. That is why you chose me." he said conceitedly. He was thoroughly enjoying this power he had over her, he had seen through her ruse and he was going to use it to his advantage. Never before had such a significant opportunity for advancement come his way and he wasn't going to let it go by without a fight.

"How dare you!" she hissed again, she couldn't believe what was happening, it wasn't turning out the way she had expected.

"I dare because I can. I am willing to ease your boredom but I want something in return." he said evenly.

Carolina was too flabbergasted to open her mouth.

"I have no desire to spend my entire life in the military, I want more than that. And I believe that you can do that for me. You are well connected both with your husbands' family and your own. You know many influential people from the high ranks of the military, to large landowners, to politicians, and even to the Royal Family. I want introductions..."

Carolina finally found her voice. "Of all the selfish, self opinionated, arrogant...I would never..."

Ignacio interrupted her. "I will give you a couple of days to think about it." he turned to leave. "You know where you can find me and it wont be riding through Ciutadella Park." he started walking towards the doors of the stables, feeling very pleased with himself.

Carolina was absolutely livid, never before had any man talked to her the way he had just done. Never had a man dictate terms to her, never had a man tell her upfront what he wanted from her. She had always known that the others wanted the same thing from her connections but it had never been discussed, it wasn't a gentleman's way to be so blatantly ruthless. Then her anger disappeared as she recalled her reasons for this liaison, she was bored, just as he had surmised and she had even thought about educating him in the ways of higher society, which is what he wanted anyway. She shook her head, and chuckled loudly. His audacity, arrogance and temper matched hers and she was aroused by it.

"Sergeant, Sergeant de Soto. I don't need time to decide." she called out just as he reached the doors of the stables.

He stopped with a look of triumph on his face and turned around, saw her walking slowly towards the middle and moved back to her. "We both get want we want." he said as he reached her.

"Si, we do." she confirmed.

He pulled her into his arms once more and kissed her hard, thrusting his tongue through her parted lips but this time she was ready and their tongues battled for dominance over the other, neither one giving in until they had to come up for air. They panted softly as they gazed with growing desire, into each others eyes.

When Ignacio moved to kiss her again, Carolina pushed him away. "I think our first lesson should be how to treat a lady." she smiled warmly at him as she began walking out of the stables.

Ignacio chuckled. "Very well." as he followed her outside.

And so began the torrid love affair between Doña Carolina de Alvaro and Sergeant Ignacio de Soto.


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Although they managed to keep their affair discreet, the rumours soon started circulating that the wife of the commanding officer was having an illicit affair with someone under his command. No names were mentioned and everyone thought that the gentleman involved was an officer, for no-one would even consider that Doña de Alvaro would take a common soldier as her lover.

Colonel de Alvaro was aware of the rumours and had to confront his wife one evening. "Carolina, I know that we each have our own life but these rumours are becoming too loud to ignore. Either be more careful with your behaviour or cease this liaison."

She was surprised by his words, never before had he interfered with her affairs and wondered why. "Vincente, there have been rumours before but you've never mentioned it. Why now?"

He sighed. "That's true and I have always ignored it but its different now." he gently placed his hands on his wife's shoulders and smiled. "It's not yet official but I'm to be promoted to General in the near future."

"Oh that's wonderful Vincente, I am so happy for you." she smiled warmly at her husband.

"Gracious Carolina. But I think you understand why you need to be even more careful now. As I must be."

She nodded. "Of course, Vincente you have my word on that and I will tell..." she stopped.

"You will tell de Soto as well. Not that he has ever talked about you, I'll give him that."

She gasped. "You know?"

Vincente chuckled as he walked towards the side table and poured them both a glass of brandy. "Of course I do. I've known the names of the others as well. Don't be too shocked my dear, I had to ensure I knew what I was up against in case it became public." he handed her the glass.

Carolina took the glass. "Dios. I had no idea. I'm sorry if that knowledge hurt you."

He shook his head. "Its okay, I know that my own...liaisons may have hurt you."

"Oh Vicente, it doesn't hurt, not anymore. I even understand in some way...it's just how you are."

He gazed into her eyes and wondered for the first time, what their marriage would have been like if he had been different. She was a charming, passionate, beautiful and proud woman. She would have been a perfect match for him. "Are you in love with him Carolina?" he asked suddenly.

She was startled by the question. "Love him?" she turned away. "I admit that I am attracted to him but love him, no I don't."

Vincente raised an eyebrow at the untold truth he heard in her soft voice. His wife was indeed in love with de Soto but she was denying it. He hoped that she didn't get too hurt when the affair ended, as he knew it must. He knew the kind of man de Soto was. He was very ambitious, he had only been in the army for eight years and had been Sergeant for several years and would do anything to further himself.

* * *

Ignacio and Carolina became even more secretive in their meetings, they never meet at the hacienda or anywhere else that they could be seen together, instead she leased a small cottage along the coast, under her father's name. They arrived at the cottage separately and from different directions. She kept away from the barracks unless she was in the company of her husband. So the rumours slowly died away, which was good for all of them.

One afternoon, the two lovers lay entwined in each others arms, some six months their affair began. An affair that was very gratifying for both of them. Carolina was definitely no longer bored but was ecstatic by her lover. She had been right, Ignacio took her like no other man could. He was aggressive for he knew what he wanted and he took it and in the process he had given her such pleasure which she never knew existed. She had been elated that he allowed her to do what she wanted to satisfy her own needs and the sense of freedom that gave her was intoxicating.

Ignacio was thrilled by his lover, she had matched his desires and was adventurous in their intense lovemaking. He had come to realise that her other lovers had never allowed her to explore her own desires, which stroked his male ego, knowing that he was the only one to bring her such pleasure. And she had lived up to her side of the bargain. In the six months he had learnt a lot about society, how to behave in company, learnt about the arts, plays and books. She taught him rudimentary French and English, and he became aware of all current events to carry on conversations at dinner parties, of how to woo influential people, how to control his temper so that he wouldn't end up fighting duels every week and learnt how to dress to impress the right people.

But their affair was coming to an end. Her husband's promotion had come through and in a week's time General de Alvaro was being transferred to a new command and was only taking several of his key advisors with him. And of course his wife.

Carolina slowly ran her fingertips over his bare chest, pleased to feel his slight tremor. "Ignacio."

"Yes my dear." he said sleepily.

"Are you still determined not to make the military your career. You know you could go a long way, you could even become an officer."

He raised his head and looked in her eye. "Si that has never changed. You know that Carolina."

She chuckled slightly. "I thought so. I do have a suggestion for you." she wriggled away from his warm body, threw back the covers and walked naked to the dresser and pulled out some papers.

Ignacio's eyes widened in appreciation as he stared at her wonderful curves, her breasts still full and high, her hips generous and her long legs perfect. He felt his body stirring once more as she returned to bed.

"Oh Ignacio surely not again." she smiled at his growing arousal.

He chuckled. "Shortly my dear. Now what do you have there?" he nodded to the papers.

"It's to do with your future. I want you to hear me out first, then you can decide on what you want." she told him somewhat nervously. She hoped that he would be pleased by this.

He was curious, he had never seen her this nervous before. "Okay Carolina, tell me."

She took a deep breath and sat on the bed and draped a cover over herself. "Ignacio, you are a smart man and I do I believe that you are meant to be more than a soldier and so an opportunity has come up and I think you should take it."

Ignacio raised an eyebrow. "What is it?"

"It will mean hard work for you."

He shrugged. "I'm not afraid of hard work, you know that. So what is it?"

"You may be at a slight disadvantage..."

"Carolina." he voice took on a warning tone.

She had the grace to look embarrassed. "Sorry. Every year Madrid University offers five scholarships to those who cannot afford the fees. The scholarship covers all tuition, books and materials as well as living expenses for the four years it takes to complete a degree. The competitions for these limited places are very fierce and it is usually given to those with contacts in high places. I want you to know that I am willing to put you forward as my protégé."

Ignacio's jaw dropped at this bombshell. Never in a million years would he ever imagine this, but his mind quickly processed the information, it was an absolutely incredible opportunity, one that he would be a fool not to take up.

Carolina was thrilled by the look of complete disbelief on her lover's face. It made everything worth while, just to see that look on his face.

"But...But you can't guarantee that I would get a place, what would I study, where would I live?"

She chuckled softly. "You can study whatever you wish, you would live on campus with other students. Ignacio, you will be going into university at a disadvantage, you will be older than the other students, and all of them will have come from wealthy families, who would have had private tutors at home. But you will also be meeting important sons and their families, you will gain an education that you would never have had, the possibilities are endless. So Ignacio what do you think?"

"Madre de dios, Carolina it's incredible. I do realise that it will be hard but like I said, I am not worried about hard work. But you didn't answer my question, can you guarantee that I would get a scholarship?"

"I'll answer that, if you answer one first. Do you want this?"

"YES, very much so, it's just what I need."

She smiled at his enthusiasm. "Then yes Ignacio, I can guarantee you one of the five scholarships, I happen to know the current Dean of the University. All you have to do is complete these forms and I will send them to him."

"Dios, why are you doing this? I mean I only wanted introductions but this..." he was speechless.

Carolina moved closer to him, took his hand and placed it over her bare breast. "Ignacio you have given me more excitement and pleasure in the last six months than I have ever had in the last ten years and I wanted to do something special for you." What she didn't say was that she had fallen in love with him, for she knew that he didn't feel the same. Oh he loved her in his own way but he wasn't in love with her.

Ignacio was overwhelmed by her generosity as he gently squeezed her soft flesh. No-one had ever thought about him, ahead of their dreams and he felt a strange feeling of humility as he kissed her soft lips tenderly. She melted into his embrace and he pushed her down onto the bed and they made love gently, lovingly and it took them to heights of pleasure they had never experienced before.

Two months later Ignacio De Soto resigned from the military and began his university studies at the age of twenty five.


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

From the beginning, Ignacio had a hard time at university. It was as though he was back to the time when he first enlisted in the army. He had to hold his temper at the inconsiderate comments of the other students of his year. They were younger than him by at least six years and to his mind, they were all pampered young pups who had no idea what life was about. They thought it was funny to call him farmboy, soldierboy, old man amongst other things until he had enough and challenged the leader, Salvadore Valdez to a duel, even though it was against the university rules to do so. He had to defend his own honour but also he had to prove to the young fops that he wasn't a man to be taken for a fool.

On the morning of the duel, the two duellists and their seconds met in a small park and the two men squared off against each other. The young men were taken by surprise by de Soto's ability with a pistol, he fired first before Valdez could even fire his own weapon.

Valdez dropped to his knees clutching his right shoulder as the bullet tore through his skin.

"I should have told you before Valdez but for some reason it slipped my mind. I am an expert shot with both the pistol and the musket. I could have killed you but I did not. Just remember that the next time you decide to dishonour my name." de Soto stated coldly before walking away from them, with a smirk on his face. Somehow he knew that they would stop their harassment. He was right, his classmates became wary of him and his reputation for his marksmanship grew amongst the other students.

Ignacio soon settled down to his studies, he had opted for history, in particular military history and literature. It was then he fell in love. Not with a woman, or a man for that matter but for politics. He took a short course in political science and he finally found what he had been looking for ever since he could remember. He saw the potential for the power he had always craved for, the ability to make decisions that would affect others, to have control over his own life.

He decided to make politics his main area of study and he began to make connections of his own to further his ambitions, once his studies had been completed. What Carolina had taught him over their six month affair, put him in good stead with the conduct of society. He was grateful for her, without her lessons or her patronage he would not have the ability or the confidence to get through the four years of study. He often thought about her and wondered how she was doing.

He admitted to himself that he had feelings for her but it wasn't love. Not that he knew what love was, seeing that he had never known that feeling. He had written her a number of letters to advise her of his progress, afterall she was his patron. But it wasn't until his was half way through his second year that he actually saw Carolina in person, albeit from a distance. It was at an award ceremony for his former commanding officer General de Alvaro, which was being held at the barracks in Madrid. He turned out partly to honour the general for he was a well-respected soldier and partly to see her, his ex-lover. What he saw stunned him.

He watched as the General opened the carriage door, his young twelve year old son jumped out with a cheeky grin at his father, who smiled back as he helped his wife down from the carriage. In Carolina's arms was a toddler, a girl by the clothing she was dressed in. What shocked Ignacio was the young child had very fair hair, while both her parents were dark haired.

Carolina smiled at her husband as she shifted her young daughter in her arms and took Vincente's hand to help her down. She had changed in the last couple of years, she was less restless and less self-centred and although she still flirted with her husband's fellow officers, she had not taken another lover since Ignacio. She put all her energy into her wonderful daughter. She casually looked around the gathered crowd and suddenly her eyes met an astonished Ignacio de Soto. Her smile faded as she saw him stare at her daughter, then met her eyes before dropping back to the young child in her arms.

Before she could say or do anything her husband said. "What's wrong Carolina?"

She shook her head. "Nothing Vincente. Lets go." she replied as she linked her arm with her husband and walked inside the building.

Ignacio was too shocked to return to his afternoon classes and walked aimlessly around Madrid. Was Carolina's daughter his child? He tried to work out the age of the child to see if she could be his but he wasn't good at telling the age of children. He snorted, he didn't really like children and they seemed to dislike him as well. Marriage and children wasn't high on his priority list at the moment, but he assumed that one day he would marry and have children of his own. His wife would have to be of good family and of good connections, in order to further his ambitions.

When he returned to his lodgings, he found a letter waiting for him at the front desk and he immediately recognised the handwriting. He took the letter upstairs and opened it.

_My dearest Ignacio,_

_After seeing the shock on your face this afternoon, I had to write to explain myself. As you saw, I do have a daughter and you would have noticed that she has light coloured hair while my husband and I have dark hair. I saw the confusion and the suspicion in your eyes but I cannot give you the answer that you are looking for. _

_My daughter is my husband's child and that is how it should be, that's how it has to be. I know that is not what you wanted to hear but there can be no other answer. What I can tell you is her name. It's Juanita. I have always liked the name._

_Ignacio, I hope that you understand._

_Forever your friend,_

_Carolina._

Ignacio sighed and leaned back in his chair. He understood completely, it would be political suicide for the General and his wife to acknowledge that her daughter was anything other than her husband's child. For although she had a number of lovers, in every other way she was fiercely loyal to her husband, he had asked once why her husband allowed her to have freedom within their marriage but she never answered and he couldn't find out any information from other sources. Whatever the reason it was a very closely guarded secret between husband and wife.

He read her letter again and knew that her daughter, Juanita, was his own child. He had once told her that his mother was named Juanita and she had admitted then she had always liked that name. He sighed to himself, he had a child that he could never acknowledge, for it would be suicide for him as well, to suggest that the wife of a well respected general had an illegitimate child. He would never do that, he cared too much about his own career and wouldn't risk a confrontation with the general.


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

At the beginning of his third year Ignacio had a new lecturer in political studies, Professor Andres Moreno. Moreno introduced his class to Machiavelli and urged debate about on what Machiavelli was saying, did he really mean what he wrote or was he being a satirist. When Ignacio read Machiavelli's book "The Prince" he found his writings intriguing and he soon felt that Machiavelli was a genius in his political thinking. It mirrored some of Ignacio's own thoughts on power. That the end justified the means, it didn't matter what he had to do, even if he had to lie and cheat to achieve the outcome that he wanted, then so be it. Morality didn't come into the equation, unless it helped in his goals.

Ignacio de Soto had found his hero.

During that year, Ignacio began to immerse himself more and more into politics. He was in a select group of six students that Professor Moreno had established as an extra class dedicated to this hardline politics. He found to his delight that Moreno had a very wide circle of friends, many with political positions in the government and he was being introduced to them, especially one Senor Carlos de Sanchez, who was one of the most influential men in Madrid. He could make or break politically aspiring men.

When Senor Carlos de Sanchez met Ignacio de Soto the first time, he wondered who this arrogant upstart was, he was a no-one, from nowhere and had been surprised that Moreno thought that this young man would bear watching in the future. So Sanchez did some checking on his own. He found that de Soto had been a common soldier and when he heard that Doña de Alvaro was his patron, he smiled. He knew the reputation of the wife of the general and what it meant; de Soto had been her lover.

But that intrigued him. Doña de Alvaro was known for her careful judgement of potential lovers and for her to take a common soldier to her bed, was fascinating. So he dug more into his background and found that his paternal grandfather had once been a small landowner, who had lost everything to the Castillo family. Sanchez thought carefully about de Soto, he was impressed that he had the drive to improve himself and everything that he had discovered pointed to an ambitious, arrogant and somewhat ruthless man, everything that made for a fine politician. Sanchez decided that he would keep an eye on the young man

Due to his increased political ambitions, Ignacio didn't have the time for all of his studies. He still kept up with his military history but his literature course was floundering. He needed to keep his marks up to standard in all his subjects in order to graduate at the end of the following year. So he decided to pay a fellow student a small fee to write his papers up. He would of course still sit the exams but the work prior would be done by someone else. It worked out well for both of them. Ignacio passed his third year exams, including literature.

* * *

A month into his fourth and final year, Ignacio saw a chance to mix with the wealthy sons in a more relaxed situation, he saw a flyer for a new Passion Play being staged by the Dramatic Society and decided to audition. There were several roles still unfilled including the Roman Commander and Judas. After an initial audition, Ignacio won the role of Judas.

On the first day of rehearsals, Ignacio was introduced to the rest of the cast by the director of the play, Senor Luis Marcus.

Marcus led Ignacio towards two young gentlemen standing by the far wall. "Senors, let me introduce Ignacio de Soto who will be playing Judas in our little drama. This is Oscar Ramiro, who will be playing Mary Magdalene..."

Oscar scowled slightly as he shook hands with Ignacio. "It's not what I was hoping for Luis."

"Oh I don't know Oscar, I think you would look handsome in a dress." teased the other young man.

Oscar snorted. "That's because you don't know anything better de la Vega."

Luis chuckled. "Don't mind these two Ignacio, they seem to enjoy baiting each other. This is Diego de la Vega, who is a freshman and is all the way from California."

"Ah from the colonies in the Americas." de Soto replied as he held out his hand.

Diego smiled. "Si, not many people know where California is." he replied as they shook hands for the very first time.

Ignacio nodded. "I have noticed the ignorance of many of the students here. One would think that with the money for private education, they would have been taught about the furthest reaches of the empire and not just about which fork to use at dinner."

The three men exchanged a quick glance of surprise at his comments.

"Ah, you're the one on a scholarship, aren't you?" Oscar asked.

Ignacio nodded warily. "Si, I am. You say that as if it's something wrong with scholarships."

"Good lord man, of course not." Oscar spluttered. "It just explains your viewpoint of education. What do you say Diego?"

Diego shrugged. "It goes to show that there should be more scholarships offered."

Ignacio looked intently at the younger man. "Why do you say that?"

"Well for a start it would make a for a more exciting place for debate when you have differing opinions, instead of the same old viewpoints." Diego replied.

Ignacio raised an eyebrow in surprise, he never thought he would hear such comments from someone who obviously came from a wealthy family. "So you believe that more places should be available to those who can not afford it?"

Diego nodded thoughtfully. "Si, education should be for all who want it."

Oscar snorted. "Don't tell me that you are one of those damnable French revolutionists who believe in equality for all. Just how old are you de la Vega?"

Diego sighed, what did his age have to do with it. "Nineteen."

"Ah the outlook of youth." Luis said with a knowing smile. "Come de Soto, there are others I need to introduce you to."

The next several weeks passed quickly for the group as their rehearsals took up a lot of their free time. The trio of Ignacio, Oscar and Diego had many discussions on various topics, including politics, education, science and the arts. Ignacio found the young men intriguing in that they represented what he thought was the worse of the upper class. Although de la Vega showed some promise with his more liberal opinions.

While they talked about education for the masses, neither one of them could work out a plan to make it work, it would cost too much for the higher classes to subsidise the fees, they believed that it would attract the worse of the lower classes, that they would come to believe that they are equals to the ruling class. Ignacio shook his head at the inborn arrogance of the higher class which he has always hated and always would.

The opening night of the play was a huge success and the audience gave several standing ovations at the end. The following day, the cast gathered to hear the reviews. Luis Marcus stood in front of the group and read out the comments.

"And lastly, all the reviews made the same remark for Ignacio De Soto's performance. To a man, they all agreed that they had never seen a man who played the role of Judas with such authenticity, with such conviction, that they urge de Soto to stay with the dramatic society for the remaining of his time here at the university."

Ignacio felt a huge wave of pride crash over him at the praise and was very ecstatic that the majority of the reviews were about his performance, except for a few praising de la Vega's portrayal of Jesus. The offer to stay with the society was tempting but Carlos de Sanchez had begun to mentoring him and there was a possibility of further introductions to the political arena.

* * *

Sanchez had watched de Soto for some time and came to the conclusion that he could use him to further his own power base. So he invited de Soto, along with another fifteen other like minded men and their ladies to a dinner party, where he would make an announcement to the younger man.

Ignacio was thrilled when he found the invitation to Sanchez's dinner party. He realised that being invited to this party, he had been accepted into the tight circle of influential political men, his future was looking better than ever. Even Professor Moreno told him that if he played his cards right, he would learn something to his advantage, so he dressed in a new suit of dark grey with matching sash, a new pristine white shirt with a mass of ruffles on the cuffs and down the front. A white silk cravat completed the suit.

As he stood in front of the mirror, he was satisfied by what he saw. A gentleman. The only issue he had was with his hair. He always had fair hair but in the last year or so, it had turned, to what can only be described as white. But he refused to darken it by chemicals, like some other men have done. He simply accepted it and then ignored it. He gave his clothes one last tug, smoothed his moustache and goatee and left his quarters.

The dinner progressed well, with much heated discussions, the food was splendid and the service by the servants exemplary. After dinner the ladies withdrew, leaving the men to their port and cigars. The men split into several smaller groups and discussed a wide variety of topics.

Carlos de Sanchez caught up with Ignacio. "So de Soto, you will be graduating soon I hear." Sanchez said politely.

"Si Senor, in three months."

"Have you any thought to what you will do once your studies are over?"

Ignacio took a careful sip of his wine. "I am keeping my options open at the moment until I make a final decision."

Sanchez nodded. "Well perhaps I can help you with that. A position has come up as a junior advisor to the Mayor of Guadalajara. It is a minor role but it could open doors for you. That is, if you are still interested in politics."

Ignacio had to mask his excitement, he didn't want to appear to eager. "That is most gracious of you Senor, to consider myself for such a position."

Sanchez smiled. "Of course it depends on whether you pass your exams. The mayor is quite strident about the educational standards of his staff."

Ignacio nodded. "I understand and I will pass my exams." he said with self confidence.

"So, shall I forward your name to Mayor Javier Garcia?"

"I would be honoured senor."

"Good, good. I believe you have a solid future ahead of you." Sanchez slapped Ignacio on the shoulder before they all moved back to the sitting room with the ladies.

Three months later Ignacio graduated from Madrid University with exceptional grades in political science, military history and of course literature. He was pleased with his marks for literature, considering that he had not attended classes nor sat the final exams. The student that he had been paying to write his papers, now attended the exams in his place for a few extra pesos. They had a new professor and no-one was the wiser and therefore Ignacio was able to cheat his way through the fourth year.


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Three weeks after graduating, Ignacio became junior adviser to Mayor Garcia and so began his political career. Garcia was a small portly man in his late forties and he had an instinct about people, he knew how to use them to his own advantage but he did it in a way that they never realised they were being used. When he met his newest staff member, he immediately saw a highly ambitious and intellegent man, who would do anything to get what he craved for, power, and he was willing to help De Soto as long he helped him in return.

Ignacio saw this chance as another stepping stone to what he wanted. He wanted a posting of his own, to rule over people, to make people see that he was someone to take notice of, that he was no longer a no-body. In no time at all, Ignacio settled into his new position, he learnt how to manage a small bureaucracy. He was amazed at the amount of paperwork that was needed to run their province but he quickly became efficient and dealt with the mountain of paperwork. He attended the monthly public meetings that were held so that the citizens of the area could air their grievances, which he found to his amazement, were many and varied.

He began to realise that the citizens complained about almost anything. Occasionally some quarrels became violent between the participants, which had to be resolved by time spent in the prison cells, while some disputes where simply absurd. One particular incident involved a group of pigs that kept getting into a neighbour's small vegetable garden and instead of building a better fence around the garden, it had escalated into tit for tat revenge, which had ended in the killing of the pigs by the owner of the garden. Now the pig farmer was seeking compensation for the lost of his stock.

After much shouting and finger pointing between the two aggrieved parties, Garcia settled the matter by making the pig farmer build his neighbour a stronger fence while the other farmer had to buy new pigs for his neighbour. Both men grumbled but in the end they agreed and so life settled down once more.

Ignacio saw how Garcia handled all the situations, he was firm and confident, but accepted no arguments and threatened on several occasions to imprison unruly citizens. He promised he would look into all the matters and the people seemed content that they had voiced their opinions to their local official. Many of the issues weren't even looked into and Ignacio noticed that the majority of the people soon forgot what they were questioning and never followed up with their mayor.

The disputes that had to be looked into were passed to Ignacio to handle. The disputes ranged from neighbours arguing over fences and boundaries, to building permits and tax collections. Ignacio found to his surprise that many people were willing to pay 'a fee' to have a dispute settled in their favour. At first he was wary of accepting this fee, simply because he didn't want to compromise his reputation with such things but he soon came to understand that it was expected for a junior official to accept a small 'administration fee' to resolve any and all conflicts. It had been the way for many generations, back to the time of the ancient Romans, when they received tributes from their provinces in Spain and elsewhere within the Roman Empire.

So Ignacio played the game, took the fees and soon his funds grew into a healthy balance. He had never thought about money just for the sake of it but had looked at wealth as a way of getting power and authority. For wealth bought its own power.

He recalled what Carolina had advised him before he took up his studies. She advised him to invest some of the scholarship funds as a future nest egg and to use the money wisely and only when he absolutely needed to. So he had lived frugally, except on his clothes, he bought only the best cloth for his suits and invested almost one quarter of his living expenses into shares of an ammunition factory. It was one area that he knew well and to his great surprise his investment had doubled in the first year alone.

So by the time of his posting to Guadalajara, he had a healthy bank balance and with the 'fees' increased his wealth to a point that he was considering another form of investment. Land.

It was during a dinner party hosted by Garcia and his wife, for their staff, that the subject of land ownership came around. "de Soto, your family originally came from El Puerto de Santa Maria near Cadiz and had their own land?"

Ignacio nodded warily. "Si, my paternal grandfather had land in that area." he didn't like to talk about his family's misfortunes.

"And wasn't it lost to the Castillo family due to gambling?" Garcia continued.

"Si, what is this about sir?"

Garcia chuckled. "Well by a strange coincidence the Castillo family is looking to sell off part of their lands to pay for gambling debts of their own."

Ignacio raise an eyebrow in surprise and his heart pounded as an idea took hold in his mind. "Are you serious sir?"

Garcia nodded. "Si and from what I hear, they are offering less than what the land is actually worth. If you are interested in getting back your family land, I would suggest you make some enquiries. You could probably demand your own price and get it."

Ignacio's quick mind understood the quirk of fate, that if he, Ignacio de Soto could regain the land that his grandfather Santos had lost to the Castillo family, by buying land back from the Castillo family due to their own gambling debts. The more he thought about it, the more he liked it. "Gracias sir, I think I will look into it."

Garcia nodded and smiled. "Good, good. A gentleman with political aspirations should be a landowner."

Ignacio decided to find out more about this land that Castillo was putting up for sale and hired an agent, Samuel Lopez, who had not only farming experience to know if the land was good but he also had a reputation for being a crafty businessman, who would get the best deal for him.

The report that Lopez gave Ignacio was encouraging, the land was fertile and with good water supply from the river that ran through it and to his amazement the parcel of land that they were selling off included the old De Soto farm. The only issue that Lopez could find was that the old hacienda was in need of restoration but other than that, there was no reason not to purchase the land and it was what he recommended.

Ignacio laughed with glee as he read Lopez's report. He decided to go ahead and ordered Lopez to begin negotiations on his behalf. The negotiations took a month to complete but in the end he was very pleased with the outcome, not only did he get the land at a very good price but he had more than doubled the size of the original De Soto farm. He had done what his father couldn't do, he had restored the de Soto fortunes. He, Ignacio de Soto Morales, was now a landowner.

Ignacio was so pleased with Lopez's work, he decided to hire Lopez as his estate manager, to run the farm as he saw fit, he knew no-one better qualified to look after his interests. He did not even consider his own family for the position. His father had died two years prior and his brother Tomos had taken over the tenant farm with his wife and their growing brood of children, their mother stayed with them. His sister had married a merchant sea captain and lived her own life.

Lopez was thrilled by the appointment, he was of farming stock and knew that being the manager of the de Soto estate he would gain advantage of being connected with the increasingly influential man. He had no desires to go in the same political direction as his employer but he had dreams of owning his own farm and he believed that this was the way forward for him. He also knew that he would not be able to cheat his employer for he didn't want to think what de Soto would do to him, if he found him cheating. de Soto would make a formidably enemy.


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

de Soto had been in the service of Garcia for a year when the staff and their wives were invited to a special luncheon in honour of an important dignitary, who had been born in the area and was on his way to France. Ignacio was discussing the latest report that Lopez had sent him with his colleagues, when he heard Garcia's voice interrupting.

"Gentlemen, may I introduce General Vicente de Alvaro and his wife Doña Carolina de Alvaro, who are on their way to take up an appointment with the Spanish Embassy in Paris."

Ignacio turned in shock as he faced his former commanding officer and his former lover. He carefully masked his face into a respectful expression as Garcia continued with the introductions.

"May I introduce Senora Margarite and Senor Alonso Mendina."

The general shook hands with Mendina and bowed to his wife. "Pleased to meet you Senora, Senor."

"Likewise General and Doña de Alvaro." Mendina said.

"This is Senor Ignacio de Soto."

If General de Alvaro was surprised to find his wife's former lover standing in front of him, he didn't show it. "de Soto, I recall that name from somewhere."

Ignacio nodded respectfully. "I had the honour to serve under your command Sir, some years ago."

de Alvaro smiled pleasantly. "Ah yes. I believe I remember, were you not awarded for bravery against the French, for saving the lives of your comrades?"

Ignacio smiled. "Si, I was sir."

"Good man. Do you know my wife?"

"No sir, we have never met." he confirmed as he gazed at his former lover. He saw how pale she had become. He never believed that he would see her again, at least never imagined to meet in this kind of situation. "Pleased to meet you Doña De Alvaro." he bowed just as she had taught him.

"I am pleased to meet you too Senor de Soto. It is always nice to meet someone from my husband's command." she said softly. She had no idea that her former lover had been assigned to this province. She had known of his politically ambitions and that he had been given a position as a junior advisor but not here. If she had known, she would have urged her husband not to come to this luncheon. She felt nauseous, never before had one of her lovers even come into direct contact with her husband.

They all sat down at the large dinning table for a scrumptious meal but Ignacio did not taste the food, he could have been eating hay for all he knew. His heart was pounding, his palms were sweaty and he wiped his hands on his trousers. He knew just one simple slip-up at the table, would mean the end of his career before it even began.

Vincente played the game as he chatted with his host. If the situation wasn't so dangerous, he would have laughed at the way his wife and her former lover were studiously ignoring each other. There was the potential of exposure but he knew that neither his wife nor de Soto would do anything to jeopardise their positions. It was just damned inconvenient for all three of them.

During the luncheon the conversation was lively, with differing opinions about the state of military readiness, of how taxes had to be raised again in an attempt to fill the coffers, depleted by the wars against France and England. The talk turned to the drought that was once again affecting the northern most provinces of Spain, which turned to discussions to landowners.

"de Soto has just purchased a fairly large piece of land, north east of Cadiz, isn't that so De Soto?"

Ignacio nodded. "Si, that's true but my land has a reliable water supply running through it, which from all accounts, never went dry in the drought of thirty years past, so there should be no concern about the harvest of my crops."

Carolina looked at Ignacio for the first time. "Do you manage the land yourself?" There was surprise in her voice that only he could detect. He felt a thrill that he actually stunned her with the news that he was a landowner. Perhaps she didn't realise just how ambitious he was.

"No Doña de Alvaro, I have a manager to run the estate." he replied as he looked in her direction before he turned away to answer another question.

The luncheon went on for several hours but Ignacio soon apologised to his host, the General and his wife and excused himself with the justification of duties to attend to. When in truth, he could no longer stay with the party, he felt that the longer he stayed, the more chance of making a mistake. Especially since his thoughts began to drift back to how beautiful she had looked the last time they were in bed together, of how utterly satisfying their lovemaking had been, so much so that his body began to betray him. No other woman could stir him like Carolina de Alvaro.

He had not taken a woman to his bed since Carolina. He had made a conscience decision, when he started university that he would not avail himself of the services of the gentlemen's clubs that his fellow students had visited. He didn't want any kind of rumours to ruin his chance of advancement, not that visiting the clubs would necessary bring condemnation but he didn't want to take the risk that it would. To Ignacio, the pleasures of the flesh wasn't even secondary to his ambitions, power was his pleasure.

Carolina watched Ignacio leave from the corner of her eye with a pounding heart. Now that the shock of seeing him again had passed, she noticed how handsome he was, the moustache and goatee suited him and his hair was now white instead of being fair. She too began to remember their intense, passionate lovemaking and to her horror she found herself becoming aroused by the memories. But unlike Ignacio, she could not simply excuse herself from the luncheon in honour of her husband.

* * *

Later that evening Ignacio arrived back at the small hacienda that he lived in and found that his housekeeper had left a plate of cold meats and bread, covered over with a cloth, on the table. But he didn't feel hungry and moved towards his bedroom, removing his jacket as he went. As he stepped into the room, he saw a single candle lit and there was a sweet aroma that was somehow familiar to him.

He felt a presence behind him and twirled around. "Carolina." he whispered as she came out of the shadows.

"Ignacio." she said softly as she moved swiftly to him, took his head in her hands and kissed him hungrily. He was stunned for a moment but as he felt her warm tongue slid into his mouth, he pulled her against him and kissed her back, thrusting his tongue against hers in that old battle for dominance, that lasted until they came up for air.

"Carolina?" he queried.

"Shhh, this never happened." her voice husky with desire.

"I understand." he whispered against her warm, soft lips.

They kissed again, urgently as their moist tongues plundered deep, their hands touching everywhere they could reach, creating such a burning need within both of them that it could only end in one way. They separated only long enough to quickly remove their clothes before they fell onto his bed in a tangle of arms and legs.

* * *

The following morning Ignacio woke up alone, he rolled over onto his back with a very satisfied smile on his face. He felt as though his life was going accordingly to plan, he was a landowner, his career was agreeable and he had just spent the night making love to a beautiful woman. He yawned, stretched and slowly threw back the covers.

Carolina had left her lover's side just before dawn, to ensure that no-one would see her leave his home. She didn't regret her decision to go to him. She knew it was dangerous for all of them but she wanted him desperately, she had not taken any lovers since him and was hungry with need for physical love. They gave each other what they needed.

Vincente knew from the moment he saw de Soto, his wife would go to him and he allowed it. For he knew that for the next five years they would be in France and there would be no contact with the former soldier. He would make sure of it. Not out of jealousy but out of necessity. His posting as the Spanish Ambassador to France was the most crucial in his entire career and he would not allow any scandals, either involving his wife or himself, to threaten that position. They had both agreed to abstain from any kind of liaisons for the duration of his appointment. He, himself would be leaving his current lover behind in Spain. He understood all too well, the strong, almost uncontrollable pull of desire towards someone else and would not reproach his wife for her actions.


	12. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Two years later Ignacio was transferred to a more senior posting at Barcelona, under the command of Senor Aaron Nazario. He found his new superior to be a weak fool, he believed that Nazario was far too lenient with the citizens. Whereas he would have taken a much harder line. Nazario gave into their demands too easily and it seemed that the citizens took advantage of it. The people believed that they had the right to come to Senor Nazario's office at any time of the day for even the smallest of things. And he never seemed to mind the inconvenience and never turned anyone away. What de Soto didn't understand was the citizens had respect for their leader for they knew that he had respect for them and their problems, no matter how big or small.

de Soto found the same undercurrent of bribery that was at his previous posting, except that it was more covert than at Guadalajara, as Nazario did not approve and was in fact attempting to stamp out the practice. But this time Ignacio refused to accept the bribes, he didn't want that kind of scandal to affect his ambition. And besides, the money from his small estate was more than enough for his needs, he no longer needed the extra funds.

Nazario noticed straight away that his new advisor was an ambitious man and was somewhat harsh in his dealings with the people. He saw that he didn't suffer fools gladly and had no compassion for citizens less fortunate then himself, which was strange considering de Soto's own humble beginnings. On a number of occasions he had to reverse his advisor's somewhat ruthless decisions after several complaints were made against him and had to caution him against using such high-handed tactics.

He tried to demonstrate to de Soto to respect the citizens but it was no use, he was too stubborn, too proud, too set in his ways to change his mind. Which was a shame, Nazario thought, de Soto had the potential to be an admirable civic leader, if he only put aside his ambition for power. In the end he could no longer tolerate the younger man's heartlessness and asked Madrid to arrange a replacement at their convenience, citing differences in opinion for the request.

Ignacio stayed at Barcelona for just over a year, when he was offered another post, this time in the province of his family roots of Cadiz and he was quite pleased with his new position. It had been five years since his graduation and he had been promoted to second in command to Senor Geraldo Reyes. Nazario's request for his replacement did not affect his career, due to his contacts in Madrid and he rose quickly through the political ranks that would have normally taken twice as long to achieve.

Senor Reyes was a like minded gentleman, who ran the garrison and the city with a firm fist, which none of the citizens dare complain or at least not complain too loudly, otherwise they could find themselves in trouble. They could be fined a small 'administration fee', or suddenly find their business without patrons for several days and it was not unknown for a complainant to spend some time in a cell. All crime was punished quickly and efficiently, due to the large numbers of soldiers to keep the peace and Reyes was even harder on his troops for any misdeeds as he believed that those under his command should lead by example. And any seaman who caused trouble, whether they were Spanish Navy or Merchant service, would be dealt with harshly.

It was while Ignacio was stationed at Cadiz that strange rumours began to circulate. It came from sailors on ships that came back from the colonies in the Americas. The strange story was of a masked bandit riding a large black stallion that was terrorising the citizens of a small outpost. At first Ignacio dismissed the stories as fantasy, dreamt up by bored sailors to brighten up a long sea voyage but as the months passed, more and more stories came to light, it became harder to ignore. The stories were no longer coming from sailors but from respectable citizens in the colony to members of their families but also from official reports from the Alcalde of the small pueblo, Luis Ramone.

These stories infuriated Ignacio. This masked man, who was known as Zorro, was defying the authority of Spain. He aided prisoners to escape, stole lawfully collected taxes for his own purpose, assaulted the Alcalde and his lancers while performing their duty to the crown, and many other crimes, almost with impunity.

An idea slowly formed in Ignacio's mind. It started as an itch, an itch that wouldn't go away. The more it itched, the more he dwelled on it, until it grew and grew into his daily thoughts. He began to believe that he, Ignacio De Soto, was the man to put down the resistance of this bandit, this Zorro. He had heard the reports from Ramone and he shook his head in disbelief at the incompetence of the Alcalde. How hard was it to capture just one man? He reflected to himself, and yet Ramone could not do that seemingly simple task.

Ignacio was not the only person concerned about this outlaw. Carlos de Sanchez was troubled, Ramone had once been a protégé of his but it seemed that the man could not bring his small pueblo under control. But he had an idea of who could.

Ignacio returned to his quarters late one evening to find a letter sitting on the mantelpiece above the slow burning fire. He immediately recognised the handwriting and wondered what Sanchez had to say. He poured himself a glass of wine and opened the letter.

_My dear Ignacio,_

_I am sure you are dismayed by the happenings in our colonies, in particular the small pueblo of Los Angeles and of the lack of progress that Luis Ramone has had in capturing this notorious outlaw known as Zorro. _

_Ramone is to be recalled back to Madrid to explain his lack of results against this outlaw and it is doubtful that he will be able to keep his position and therefore the post of Alcalde will be opened up to any who wish it. To that end, I have put your name forward on a short list of three other men to be appointed Alcalde of Los Angeles._

_Ignacio, I believe that you are the man to restore law and order to our further most colonies and although I cannot guarantee that you would obtain the appointment, you will have my support, should you wish to further your career._

_Regards,_

_Carlos de Sanchez._

Ignacio was astounded by this exciting news and he felt a great wave of self-importance crash over him. To think that Carlos de Sanchez would consider him, Ignacio De Soto, to do the job that Ramone could not. He had no doubts that he was the right man for the job; he would quickly restore order and bring the criminal to justice at the end of a rope.

He knew that when he did, he would have any posting he wanted, he would demand it. He wanted Madrid. He had fallen in love with the great city of Madrid during his university days. He loved the hussle and bustle of the big city, loved being in the centre of power, and of its endless possibilities for advancements. He started to put his things into order for he knew he had to be ready to travel to Madrid at a moments notice. All he had to wait for was the word to come through and he would ride as fast as he could to the capital.

* * *

Ignacio received the word two weeks later. He was summoned to Reyes office early one morning.

"Ah de Soto, you seem to have friends in high places. This is a request to release you from your duties here."

Reyes handed Ignacio a sealed letter and smiled warml.y "Congratulations de Soto, you will be missed."

Ignacio bowed his head slightly. "Gracias sir." He took the letter and headed back to his quarters. His heart pounded in his chest as he shut the door behind him and opened the letter. It simply read.

_Ramone is dead and your presence is required in Madrid, at your earliest convenience. _

_Sanchez._

* * *

Ignacio reached Madrid late the following day and immediately went to the Sanchez mansion. He was ushered into the library. "Ah de Soto, glad you made it here in time." Sanchez shook his hand. "A glass of Madeira?"

"Si senor."

Sanchez poured each a glass. "Terrible business about Ramone."

"You said that Ramone is dead, how? Was this Zorro involved?" Ignacio wanted to know.

"You can count on it. If he didn't kill him outright, he bought about his death. Apparently he fell to his death."

Ignacio frowned. "Fell to his death, how?"

Sanchez shrugged. "The details are vague but it seemed that Ramone was visiting a prison and he either fell or was pushed off the ramparts." he paused and took a sip of his wine. "But Ramone's death means an excellent prospect for your future."

Ignacio schooled his face into a careful neutral mask, Sanchez was known to abhor overt displays of arrogance and pride. "What are my chances for this position?" he asked.

"Your chances I would say, are very good but there is a strong candidate, Don Antonio Xavier, who has a lot of support."

Ignacio frowned slightly. "Don Antonio Xavier, I don't believe I know him."

Sanchez snorted. "I doubt that you would. He is one of those moderates, who wouldn't know how to handle the situation in Los Angeles. It needs a strong man that can bring order quickly and efficiently and not afraid to use a strong fist if it's called for. And that man is you de Soto."

Ignacio nodded. "I understand that even some of the citizens are showing support to this criminal and therefore they are defying the authority of Spain. I would do whatever it takes to restore order."

"I know you would and if you can do that within a reasonable timeframe, your future will be assured."

Ignacio straightened his jacket. "Senor, I want your assurance that when I bring the pueblo under control, that I will be able to choose my next appointment."

Sanchez raised an eyebrow at this comment. "That's a big ask, de Soto."

"I am well aware of that, senor. However I will bring that outlaw to justice within three months."

"And in return."

"I want Madrid." Ignacio stated firmly.

Sanchez almost chuckled at his audacity. This man needed to be watched very closely, he could become quite dangerous. He knew that it was prudent to keep one's potential adversaries close by. "Very well de Soto, if you can regain control over the Los Angeles district within three months, I will guarantee Madrid for you." Sanchez confirmed as he shook hands with Ignacio. "You know de Soto, this all depends on whether you are selected."

Ignacio nodded thoughtfully and smiled wickedly. "Of course it does."

Sanchez narrowed his eyes shrewdly. "de Soto, I have no desire to know what you are planning but whatever it is, keep it within the law."

Ignacio chuckled. "Of course, would I do otherwise?"

Sanchez smiled. "I wouldn't like to bet on that."

The two men laughed as they continued discussing the political situation in the colonies.

Two weeks later Ignacio set sail for the colonies. He had challenged the newly appointed Alcalde to a duel and won. He made Don Antonio Xavier back down in public and in front of witnesses. Ignacio was even more convinced that he was the man for the job. How could this man bring order to Los Angeles when he could not or would not fight for his own honour? Ignacio reflected.


	13. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Present day.

Ignacio tossed in his bed as he remembered how self-centred he was in thinking that he would restore order to Los Angeles and its outlying district within three months. It had been two years since he arrived and all hope of returning to Madrid a hero, was dead. Sanchez had severed all ties with him, so had many others. They had left him to rot in the small dusty pueblo.

In his arrogance, he had totally underestimated his enemy and despite his strong military background, he had not been able to capture the outlaw. This Zorro was cunning, smart and he didn't play by the ordinary rules of engagement, he had the support of the people and no matter what inducements or punishments he could think of, no-one turned the outlaw in. Zorro seemed to appear out of no-where on that half wild horse of his and disappear before his lancers could take aim with their muskets.

Ignacio shook his head in dismay at the thought of his idle lancers. He admitted that he was at fault for not completing their training, he should have been harsher with them and yet he didn't know why he had dropped the instructions. If he had the ability, he would have replaced the entire garrison with fresh troops but that was impossible so he had to work with what he had.

Ignacio sighed loudly and rose tiredly from his bed once more. It was time to get up anyway. He washed and dressed just as a lancer knocked on his door and entered with his commandante's breakfast.

"Gracias trooper." Ignacio said absently.

The lancer nodded and placed the tray on the table and left.

As he ate his breakfast, Ignacio heard a commotion outside his quarters. He crossed the room, opened the door and called out. "What's going on Sergeant?"

Mendoza walked up to his commanding officer. "A messenger has come from Monterey with a letter for you Alcalde." He handed over the letter.

Ignacio noticed the seal of the Governor and felt the blood drain from his face.

"Alcalde?" Mendoza said concern reflected in his voice.

"Thank you Sergeant. Don't you have any work to do?"

Mendoza nodded. "Si Alcalde."

"Then get to it man."

"Si Alcalde."

Ignacio closed the door without waiting to see if the good Sergeant obeyed him.

* * *

Later that morning the de la Vegas were inside Victoria's tavern when they heard hammering coming from outside. "Ohhh, I hate when they use my tavern as a notice board." She huffed as she went outside to see what the lancers were putting up.

Diego hid his smile as he and the other patrons followed her.

"Sergeant, what's going on?" Don Alejandro asked.

"Ah Don Alejandro, it's a truce." Mendoza replied with a smile.

Diego frowned. "A truce?"

"Si Don Diego. The Alcalde wants a truce with Zorro, he wants to speak with him."

"It's a trap, there's no reason for the Alcalde to speak with Zorro." Victoria said heatedly.

Mendoza shook his head. "No, no senorita. The Alcalde will give Zorro twenty four hours to come to him."

"Victoria's right, it sounds like a trap." Don Alejandro stated.

"I don't believe so, Don Alejandro. The Alcalde just wants to talk."

"Talk about what?" Victoria asked.

Mendoza shrugged. "He didn't tell me." he turned to his lancers. "Come on men, we have several more notices to put up. Adios Senorita, senors."

"Adios Sergeant."

They watched him go and Victoria was called back inside her tavern

"Are you going to see him Diego?" Don Alejandro whispered to his son.

Diego nodded. "Yes, I will."

"Even though it could be a trap as Victoria says."

"Yes father, I must not let an opportunity pass to resolve our conflict peaceable." Diego confirmed.

Don Alejandro sighed. "Be careful Diego, I don't want to lose another son."

Diego placed his hand on his father's shoulder as they walked back inside the tavern. "I promise to be careful father."

* * *

Later that night, Ignacio was in his office packing his belongings when he heard a slight rustle behind him. "Ah Zorro, I'm pleased that you decided to come." he said and turned to face his opponent.

Zorro grinned and bowed slightly. "Always at your service Alcalde."

Ignacio chuckled. "Not always though, hey Zorro." he replied as he crossed the room to the table that held a decanter of wine. "Glass of Madeira?" he asked as he poured himself a glass.

Zorro's eyes widened in surprise at De Soto's graciousness and wondered what was going in on that mind of his. "Gracias Alcalde but I will have to decline. I'm sure you understand."

Ignacio snorted. "Si, of course but you don't mind if I have a glass do you?"

"Of course not Alcalde." Zorro replied calmly as he watched his rival with alertness, waiting for the trap to be sprung.

Ignacio turned and saw how tense Zorro was and smiled. "Relax Zorro, I didn't ask you here to arrest you."

"Why did you?" he replied as he forced himself to relax and he leant against the wall nonchalantly.

"For a start, your identity."

Zorro chuckled. "If you think that I will tell you that, then you are surely mistaken."

Ignacio grinned. "I never thought you would but I already know who you are. Diego de la Vega."

Zorro managed to keep his features relaxed at hearing his name, he wasn't sure if de Soto was playing a game or whether he actually knew. "Do you really think Don Diego is me? Perhaps you have had one too many glasses of wine." he smiled assuredly.

Ignacio laughed. "Perhaps I have but I do know your name, Diego."

The two men looked at each other appraisingly before Zorro spoke up. "What makes you believe that I could be Don Diego?"

Ignacio sighed as he placed his glass on the table and noticed Zorro's hand tightened on the hilt of his sword. "Easy Diego, if I wanted to arrest you, I would have done it before now." he smiled when Zorro's hand remained where it was. "Over the last several weeks, I've had time to think about a lot of things, to think about what I have heard, when I...I shot the emissary to save your life..."

"You mean the life of Don Diego and his father." Zorro interrupted with a grin.

Ignacio smiled back. "Have it your way then. When I shot Risendo to save the life of Diego, I remembered afterwards some strange words that the emissary was about to say. I'm sure you remember that."

Zorro grinned wickedly. "I'm sure I don't know what you mean."

Ignacio shook his head. "Shall I refresh your memory then. I heard Risendo say just before he died, that he was going to kill not only Diego but also...? Unfortunately he died before he could finish his words. What do you think he meant?"

Zorro shrugged. "He could have meant anything, the emissary was a man separated from reality."

Ignacio nodded. "Yes he was but the more I thought about those words the more it made sense. He was going to kill not only Diego but also Zorro."

Zorro laughed. "If you believe that, then you are more crazier than I thought."

Ignacio laughed with him. "Believe what you want, but I know it's true and so do you. But you have nothing to fear. I have no intention of taking the life of another of Don Alejandro sons, especially since you have save my life several times now."

There was a moment of silence between the two men, each weighing up the other. Each knew the truth, even if Zorro wasn't going to admit to it.

Ignacio sighed. "Have you any regrets about your life Diego?" he asked softly as he sat on the edge of his desk, cradling his glass of wine in his hand.

Zorro was astounded, he had never known de Soto to be so reflective on life, especially his own. Perhaps he was looking at a man who had changed so dramatically over the last couple of weeks, to be the complete opposite of what he once was. He decided to be honest as he could be. "A few regrets Ignacio." he confirmed.

Ignacio nodded. "I've had more than a few regrets. More than I would like actually." he took a sip of wine. "When Risendo arrived I thought it would be the answer to my prayers. I knew of his reputation for getting things done and I had hoped that he would help me to finally capture you."

"But it didn't work out that way." Zorro added.

"No it didn't. But he made me realise what type of monster he had become, in pursuit of his objectives without regard for anyone or anything. I saw his hatred, saw his arrogance and selfishness and I saw myself becoming that same monster." he paused to gather his thoughts.

Zorro was stunned by this revelation and he began to feel hope for the first time since he donned the mask, that his crusade against tyranny might be coming to an end. He prayed it would be, for he had longed for the battle to be over, so that he could live his own life with the woman he loved.

Ignacio continued. "I saw how I had treated people in the past, saw that my own ambitions made me selfish and arrogant. I saw what it had done to Risendo and it scared me. Is this what I am? Am I a monster too?" he asked.

"Ignacio, you're not..." Zorro started to say.

"No Diego. I know what I am and I have found that I don't like it." he took another sip of wine. "Have you ever felt fear Diego, I mean real fear? Fear that you were about to die and you could not do anything about it." he asked quietly.

Ignacio's words struck a nerve with Zorro, as the recent memory of being buried alive in Diablo Canyon came to mind. He had felt horror as he tried to escape the trap of his unknown brother had set for him but he had not been fast enough and had been caught in the explosion. When he had regained consciousness and realised that he was buried under rubble, he had felt terrified that he would not be able to dig his way out and that he would die a slow and agonising death. And he would have if it hadn't been for Toronado.

Ignacio was watching his rival intently and nodded slowly. "I see that you have." he said understandingly.

Zorro nodded, no words were needed between these two men.

"Did that change you?" Ignacio wanted to know.

Zorro let out his breath that he didn't realise he was holding. This meeting was definitely not what he had expected when he had accepted the truce. His close call with death had changed him. It made him realise that he could no longer lie to his father or to Victoria. Life was too precious to waste. "Yes it did." he admitted.

Ignacio nodded. "So it was with me. When Risendo tied me to those wagons, I knew without a doubt that he would go through with my execution and I would die a horrible and painful death. I saw that no-one came to my assistance except for Mendoza. His loyalty won't go unrewarded." he finished off his glass of wine and poured himself another drink. He shook his head as he turned back. "I felt real fear that day, that I would have done anything to save my own skin, even leaving my loyal sergeant behind to face the wrath of the emissary" he snorted. "What kind of man does that? Only a cowardly one." he placed his glass on his table a little too hard, as the wine splashed over the wood.

Zorro remained silent throughout his rival's narrative, somehow he knew that Ignacio simply needed to talk and he felt strangely honoured that his old university colleague would open up to him. He realised that there was no-one else that Ignacio could talk with, he had no friends or even family in California, so he had turned to his archrival to help ease his soul.

Ignacio wasn't aware of Zorro's insight into his actions as he tried to make sense of what he had been feeling over the last several weeks. "It took Risendo and his hatred of you, of everyone, to make me realise what I had become, of the kind of life that lay ahead of me." he sighed and shook his head. "But it won't matter for much longer."

Zorro frowned. "What do you mean?"

Ignacio spread his arms out. "Did you notice that I am packing?"

"Well yes, now that you mention it. Are you going somewhere Ignacio?"

He snorted. "You could say that. I received a letter from the Governor today. I'm being sent back to Madrid to explain why I killed the King's Emissary and there can be only one outcome to that. My death."

"You can't be serious, surely they wouldn't demand your life. I mean you saved my...I mean Don Alejandro and his son's life."

"You can't even admit now that you are Diego can you?" Ignacio sighed. "Yes, they can demand my execution. I did take the life of Risendo and nothing can change that. I am to leave tomorrow afternoon on the stage to San Diego." he finished his glass of wine. "I asked you here to tell you this, to tell you that it is over, your fight for justice and peace is finally over. For no matter who replaces me as Alcalde, it couldn't be any worse than I have been."

Zorro couldn't find the words to express his feelings. He knew without a doubt that his old university colleague was telling him the truth and he didn't want to build up his hopes of removing his mask forever. "I thought the same when Ramone died, that we would get a better leader..."

"And yet you got me instead. Well I will make sure that the next man appointed will be the one this pueblo deserves."

"Ignacio, I always believed that you had the makings of a good leader."

"Gracias Diego." he said humbly. "Now go and marry that tavern wench of yours." he smiled.

Zorro smiled back. "If she will have me."

"Doesn't she know? After all these years!" he replied incredulously.

"No, she doesn't." he shook his head.

Ignacio narrowed his eyes shrewdly. "Don't tell me that the great Zorro is afraid of a woman?" he chuckled when he saw his adversary squirm, it was something he never thought he would ever see. "You ARE afraid of her, aren't you?"

Zorro chuckled. "Well you know what her temper is like and when she finds out who I am...well..." he shrugged.

Ignacio laughed out loud. "Si, I do but you should know that you have nothing to fear from the good senorita. For I know that she loves you Diego."

Zorro frowned. "How do you know that?"

Ignacio felt pleased that he could tell his rival something he didn't know. "The senorita has shown jealousy over you on a number of occasions, especially the time when you had Senorita Herrera as a house guest. Victoria was quite jealous."

"You can't be serious." he couldn't believe what he had said.

"I'm very serious, Diego. She has feelings for you. For both of you." he chuckled again as Zorro stared opened mouth at him. "I would love to be there when you tell her but alas I cannot."

Zorro nodded. "Gracias Ignacio, I think." he moved to go, he had been too long in the office as it was and didn't want any lancer to catch him unawares.

Ignacio saw the movement and held out his hand. "I wish you luck Diego."

Zorro smiled. "And to you Ignacio. Don't give up hope."

The truth of the secret was acknowledged between the two men but not spoken aloud, as they shook hands for the last time.


	14. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Two months later Ignacio de Soto stood in front of the board of inquiry that had been created to examine his role into the shooting death of Emissary Gilberto Risendo and to take whatever action was deemed necessary. He dreaded the outcome of the inquiry, for he knew the only outcome for his actions would be his execution, it wasn't something he particular desired.

"We have investigated this matter thoroughly Senor de Soto. We have interviewed Senora Inez, a most unpleasant woman to be sure and we have reviewed the appeals from Don Alejandro de la Vega and his son, as well as various citizens of Los Angeles. We have considered the delicate nature of Risendo's relationship to the de la Vegas and of that mad woman's goals to destroy that highly respected name by whatever means possible, including convening the death of both Don Alejandro and Don Diego, so that they could gain possession the de la Vega estates. We have taken into account the brutal deeds that Risendo enacted against the citizens of Los Angeles and we have come to the conclusion that the actions you took were reasonable. It would have been more prudent to wound Emissary Risendo instead of taking his life but what is done, cannot be undone."

"Si senor." his heart pounded his chest, his throat dry. This was not what he had expected, he had believed that the panel would have denounced him as a murderer, not to say that his actions were reasonable. It gave him a small feeling of hope, hope that he wouldn't be executed.

"de Soto, do you agree that your actions cannot go unpunished, for we cannot allow our citizens to believe that they can get away with killing men that have been appointed by the King himself, no matter the circumstance."

Ignacio nodded. "Si I do." he replied, glad that his voice sounded normal to his ears, for his heart pounded hard in his chest. What did this mean...?

"Good. Now the question is, what do we do with you? Your execution is not warranted given the situation nor is imprisonment. We have considered your career up to this point and have noticed a certain ruthlessness in your ambition and your lack of control over your last posting in the colonies. This cannot be ignored. Ambition is good, in fact it is a requirement for public life but not at the expense of others. Do you not agree de Soto?"

"Si senor." He immediately schooled his features into a neutral mask to hid his sudden elation, they weren't going to demand his death. He was going to live!

"Very well, we had decided to give you one last chance, a chance to prove yourself to be the leader that some people believe you to be. If you do not take up this opportunity, charges of dereliction of duty, amongst others, will be laid against you, which will likely end with a prison sentence. Do you understand de Soto?"

Ignacio nodded, "Si I do senor."

"So be it. You will be required to..."

* * *

Ignacio exited the building in stunned disbelief. He simply could not take in the news. At first he thought it was some kind of joke but the look on the board member's faces showed no amusement and he realised just how serious they were. He shook his head as he descended the steps of the large imposing building, the joke was on him alright.

"Ignacio." a soft voice came from behind him.

He turned and gasped. "Carolina?"

"Si, how are you?" she asked as she stepped down to his level.

He bowed slightly and reached for her hand and planted a soft kiss to her skin. "I'm doing fine and yourself?"

She smiled. "I'm okay, all things considered."

Ignacio gazed at her, noticed that she was still a beautiful woman, even though they hadn't seen each other for over five years. "I'm not sure what you mean." he replied as they slowly walked along the footpath.

"You don't know do you?" she wasn't all that surprised, he had been on the other side of the world for the last several years.

He shook his head. "Know what?"

Carolina stopped and placed her hand lightly on his arm. "Vincente died a year ago."

"Madre de dios, no I didn't know. You have my sincere condolences Carolina."

"Gracias Ignacio." she replied as they started walking again. "Even though I was never in love with him, he left a rather large gap in my life when he died."

He nodded. "How long were you married?" he asked gently.

"Twenty two years. I was nineteen when we married. It feels like a lifetime ago." she sighed softly.

So she was only five years older than him, Ignacio reflected, not the eight or nine years that he had once thought.

They walked in silence for awhile before she asked. "So what happened in there today, Ignacio?"

He raised an eyebrow. "You know what happened then?"

She chuckled pleasantly. "Of course. Do you really think that the shooting of the King's emissary by another government appointed man, along with rumours of an insane woman, of a son stolen at birth from a prominent family would go unnoticed by society?"

Ignacio snorted. "I guess not. I can imagine that this story will keep the gossips busy for a long time to come."

Carolina smiled. "Si, I don't doubt that. I presume that you are not being charged for the death of Risendo, considering that you are walking around free."

He shook his head. "No, I won't be facing charges."

"But what?" she persisted, she had a feeling there was more to this than he was telling her.

Ignacio sighed. "I am not getting off altogether free."

Carolina was surprised to see her former lover squirm in embarrassment. "Ignacio, tell me."

He sighed again. "They have given me a position as Alcalde..." he paused again.

"Ignacio." she warned.

"I am to return to Los Angeles as Alcalde and put right my mistakes." he huffed as he slapped his gloves against his leg.

Carolina bit her lower lip to keep from laughing, who would have believed that the authorities had such a wicked sense of humour.

He didn't noticed her amusement. "Apparently if I don't atone for my errors and turn Los Angeles into a thriving place the citizens deserve within six months, then I will be charged with dereliction of duty and may end up in prison...Carolina, it's not funny." he finally noticed her merriment.

"Oh Ignacio, I'm sorry but don't you see, it's so deliciously outrageous that it's perfect for you." she started to giggle, almost like a schoolgirl.

His hurt pride fell away, saw the humorous side of it and grinned. "I guess it would be rather ironic to go back to Los Angeles after what has happened." he chuckled as a thought crossed his mind. "Can you imagine the expression on their faces when they see me again."

They both laughed out loud causing several passerbyers to look at them curiously.

"I wouldn't mind seeing the shocked expressions on their faces." Carolina said after awhile.

Ignacio raised both eyebrows, now what did she mean by that, he wondered. "Would you?"

"Si, I would." she replied softly.

He frowned slightly, did she mean that, or was she playing some kind of game? Was she suggesting a continuation of their previous affair or perhaps something more? Did he want something more than an occasional romp in bed? Over the last couple of months he had reflected not only on his life but also on Carolina and what she meant to him. She was the only woman who could bring out the best in him. Although he had pursued one or two senoritas over the last couple of years, nothing came of it, for they could not compare with Carolina. Did he love Carolina, perhaps he did. Would he like her to be his wife? Would she want to become his wife? He couldn't believe that he was thinking about marriage. He couldn't imagine being with someone else, other than Carolina. So he decided to take a risk, a risk that she would reject him.

Carolina watched him out of the corner of her eye, saw him deep in thought. She knew that she had shocked him with her subtle suggestion to go with him to Los Angeles, that perhaps for the first time that he thought about a more stable relationship with her. For she loved him, had loved him from almost the first time they had met twelve years ago. She wanted more than a frolic in bed on a lonely night. She could see that he had changed, just as she had changed. She had changed the moment she first held Ignacio's daughter in her arms, she felt a love so strong that it overwhelmed her. Never before had she had felt such love for her daughter and for the man who had fathered her. She loved her son, but not like she loved her daughter. So she put her little girl first, before her own needs and was no longer the selfish woman she once was.

They had come to a park and entered through the large iron gates. He stopped suddenly, forcing her to stop as well. "Carolina do you really mean that, would you come to Los Angeles with me?" he wanted to know.

She smiled slightly. "Do you want me to?"

He let out his breath that he didn't know he was holding. He looked intently into her eyes as he tried to understand what she wanted, to understand what he wanted. He placed his hands on her shoulders. "Carolina, I have thought about you, about us, over the years. I wondered how you were going, hoped that you were happy. I found that I missed your presence in my life." he paused then grinned wickedly. "I missed you in my bed."

Carolina felt a small blush rise over her face at his candour, felt her heart begin to race at his words and their meaning. "Me too Ignacio."

He nodded. "I have tried to pursue other women, with the intent of marriage but it never felt the same when I was with you. Carolina, I don't know what love is, I've never been in love before so I don't know what I feel for you is love."

"What do you feel Ignacio?" she said softly as she gazed into his eyes.

He ran his fingers through her soft hair and sighed. "I do have feelings for you, feelings which makes me think about you often, makes me want to protect you from all evils, to hold you in my arms, to kiss you, to make love to you. But also I enjoy our verbal fencing matches, I love it that you do not hold back when you are angry, that you are not shy about telling me what you want, you have a witty sense of humour and you are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen."

Carolina felt tears burn in her eyes. "Ignacio, you do love me."

He nodded. "I guess that is what I am trying to say. I am not the romantic type that can quote you poetry from the top of my head..."

Carolina placed her fingers against his lips. "Shhh, Ignacio, you are doing just wonderful. Is this your way of asking me to..."

Ignacio smiled warmly but felt unusually shy as he gently squeezed her shoulders. "I do want you to come with me to Los Angeles, but not as my mistress. I want more than that. Carolina, will you do me the honour of becoming my wife."

With tears flowing down her face, she nodded. "Oh Ignacio yes I will marry you."

"Carolina." he whispered as he pulled her tight into his arms. He felt an overwhelming burst of love crash over him at her acceptance. Never before had he felt this way towards anyone, he was so overcome by this new emotion, that he had to hold back unmanly tears that threatened to spill down his face.

He pulled back slightly and without regard for their public appearance, kissed her gently on her lips. Carolina sighed at the tenderness that he was showing her and moved to deepen the kiss and that old familiar battle for dominance started once more as their warm tongues danced together.

He pulled back and gazed lovingly into her eyes. "I do love you Carolina de Alvaro." he panted.

"And I love you Ignacio de Soto." she breathed heavily.

They smiled at each other before he took her hand and they walked slowly around the park.

"It won't be easy in Los Angeles, it's a very small pueblo, with only a score or so, of buildings in the dusty streets."

She nodded. "It will be okay Ignacio, as long as we are together." she smiled lovingly.

His heart completely melted at her smile, dios I really do love her, he reflected. "And if you believe the gossips are bad here in Madrid, just wait until we get to Los Angeles."

She chuckled. "Just imagine the gossip when you bring a wife with you."

He laughed with her. "The talk will probably last them for years and years."

They were silent for a moment as they continued to walk around the park.

"Carolina, what about your children?"

She smiled warmly at the mention of her children. "Enrique is twenty one years old and is in the Army, following in his father's footsteps and would you believe he is courting a young senorita. I can't believe how fast the years have gone, I can still see Enrique as a small boy, getting into trouble."

Ignacio nodded. "And Juanita?" he asked carefully.

She held her breath. "She is now eleven and quite a young lady. I want her to come with us, Ignacio, I won't leave her alone here in Madrid."

"I would never ask you to leave her behind." he paused then continued. "I need to know Carolina."

Her heart beat faster as she realised what he wanted to know. "Did you receive my letter that time?"

"Si I did, but I want to hear it from you."

Carolina moved away from him, she felt uncertain about whether she should tell him or not.

"Please Carolina, I need to know if Juanita is my daughter." he came up behind her.

She sighed and turned to face him. "Why do you need to know?"

"Otherwise I will always have doubts about you and her. I have lived with this doubt since that day I saw you with your daughter, I cannot live like that anymore. I don't want any uncertainties in our marriage."

She looked down at the ground and made her decision for better or worse. She looked up into the apprehensive face of her future husband. "Yes, Ignacio, Juanita is your daughter but if you mention this to anyone at all, I will fight you to the last breath in me. I will bring you down so fast, you won't know what hit you. You will never be able to show yourself in society again. That is my solemn promise to you." she said forcefully.

Ignacio blinked at her threat, he had no doubts whatsoever that she would go through with it. She would be a formidable enemy if he ever crossed her, for she had too many friends, in many levels of society and he had the most to lose if the information ever leaked out. "Thank you for being honest with me Carolina. I give you my word that if the knowledge of Juanita's parentage leaks out, it will not be from my lips."

She nodded gratefully. "Gracias. I know that you would never tell but I cannot take that chance. For all intents and purposes Juanita was Vincente's daughter and nothing will ever change that."

He nodded. "I understand. What is she like?" he asked eagerly.

She smiled at his enthusiasm. "I never realised that you wanted children."

He snorted. "I believed that one day, I would marry and have children but never really thought about it. In fact, I'm not really good with children."

She chuckled. "Perhaps you would be a better father than you think. Juanita is a mixture of both of us, she can be stubborn if she doesn't get her own way but that is tempered with a good sense of right and wrong. She is smart and has a curious mind, she has a good seat in the saddle, she is a pretty girl and will grow into an attractive young woman… what are you laughing at." she huffed.

"I'm sorry Carolina, you certainly have a mother's pride in your daughter."

She chuckled. "Of course and so will you when you meet her."

"I hope she will like me." he said hopefully, he had never thought he would be looking forward to meeting his daughter. It was a strange feeling of expectation and nervousness at the same time. Again he was overcome by feelings that he had never felt before and it was intoxicating.

"You might expect some resistance Ignacio, she loved Vincente and misses him dearly." she cautioned him.

He sighed and nodded. "If I can't be her father, I will try to be her friend."

"That's all we can hope for." she paused then continued. "I would like to give you another child, to claim as your own." she said softly as she squeezed his hand.

Ignacio raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure.. I mean are you able? At your age."

She nodded. "I'm forty-one years old and I can still fall pregnant. There is a risk at my age for both me and the child but there is always a risk for any woman, no matter what her age. But do you want a child Ignacio?"

He squeezed her hand and smiled warmly into her eyes. "Yes, I would like that very much."

"Then we will have another child." she smiled back.

They continued walking through the park, coming close to the exit. "How soon do you have to leave for Los Angeles?"

"The next ship is in three weeks. Is that enough time to arrange a wedding?"

She chuckled. "It will have to be."

He laughed with her as they walked out of the park and discussed their upcoming wedding.

Ignacio was staggered by just how much his life had changed from the time he shot Risendo in order to save the life of Diego de la Vega, to questioning his own behaviour and even his entire existence. He had realised that his ruthless ambition for power, regardless of whom or what stood in his way, had hurt him more than he ever knew possible. It had almost destroyed his soul.

His life changed even more when he was recalled back to Madrid to answer for his actions. He had been given a second chance of life when he was spared from the death penalty and now he was about to marry the only woman that could ever be a match for him, it left him very overwhelmed. He felt that it was all a dream and at any moment he would wake up and find himself back to his old life. If someone had told him a year ago that his life would change so dramatically, he would have laughed and then thrown them into prison for making up such outrageous lies. But his life had changed and so had he, for the better. Now all he to do was prove it to the people of Los Angeles.


	15. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Two months later, the citizens of Los Angeles were waiting with an air of excitement, of anticipation for their new Alcalde to arrive. As the stage approached the small pueblo, the citizens gathered in groups, talking and laughing when Victoria moved to Diego's side and slipped her hand into his. He looked down and smiled at the woman he loved more than life itself and squeezed her hand.

Victoria finally had her masked bandit where she wanted him and they were slowly showing the citizens of their deep love for each other, to allow her time to transfer her affections from Zorro to Diego. For Zorro had rarely been seen in the last couple of months and Diego had taken the opportunity of the change in leadership to finally reveal his secret to his love. He chuckled to himself as he remembered her reaction. She had yelled at him, punched him in the chest and then she threw herself into his arms and kissed him soundly.

"Just what are you laughing about Diego." she asked with a smile.

Diego grinned, squeezed her hand and whispered. "I was remembering your reaction to the secret."

She grinned back. "The look on your face was well worth the wait."

He chuckled. "I guess it was. I love you Victoria."

She shivered by his warm breath on her neck. "I love you too Diego." she replied softly.

Just then the stage rumbled down the street and everyone's attention was drawn to the dusty carriage as it came to a stop in front of the tavern.

Ignacio smiled at his wife and daughter. "We are here. Ready?" he asked.

"Si, we are." Carolina replied with a smile of her own and she squeezed her daughter's hand. "Remember what I said Juanita, this is a very small pueblo and..."

"Oh mama, I know, I won't say anything bad about it." the eleven year old girl replied as she rolled her eyes. Both her mother and stepfather had told her many times to behave herself when they reached Los Angeles.

Carolina gave her husband a knowing smile over her daughter's head.

Ignacio chuckled as he had caught both their looks and he felt another rush of love for them both. He was still a little overwhelmed by these strong feelings that he had never felt before and was coming to terms with this new sentiment and how contented it made him feel.

The citizens watched with excitement as the door of the stage opened and out stepped Ignacio de Soto. The loud cheers and whistles that had been growing amongst the gathered crowd, dwindled away to nothing and it was replaced by loud gasps of disbelief and then deadly silence. They couldn't believe their eyes as they took in the sight of their former leader. Surely they didn't deserve this, they didn't deserve his harsh treatment of them. They didn't want a return to the old ways.

Ignacio smiled at the reaction of the gathered crowd as he turned and helped his wife and daughter down from the stage. He shared an amused look with Carolina.

"Senor...de Soto..." Don Alejandro spluttered, for once in his life, he couldn't finish his words.

Ignacio turned back. "Si, Don Alejandro, I have returned as your Alcalde." He shook hands with the elder man. "May I present my wife Carolina and my step-daughter Juanita de Alvaro."

There was another ripple of surprise throughout the crowd.

"My dear, this is Don Alejandro de la Vaga and his son Don Diego."

Both men recovered quickly and bowed slightly. "Senora de Soto, it is a pleasure to meet you."

Carolina smiled warmly. "Gracias Don Alejandro."

"Welcome to Los Angeles Senora and Senorita." Diego smiled at the young girl standing by her mother, who seemed to have familiar features but he couldn't place it.

Juanita giggled at being singled out and curtsied. "Gracias senor."

Carolina smiled her thanks to the handsome young Don for making her daughter feel welcome.

"May I present Senorita Victoria Escalante, she owns the tavern."

The two women smiled at each other. "Welcome Senora, if you need anything, just let me know."

"That is most kind of you senorita, gracias."

"Ah Sergeant, it's good to see you again." Ignacio said as Mendoza came over to him.

"Welcome back Alcalde and senora." Mendoza said with a smile.

Carolina smiled at the portly lancer as her husband continued. "Sergeant, can you please arrange to have our luggage transferred to our quarters."

"Si Alcalde."

Ignacio turned his attention back to the gathered crowd and he raised his voice so all could hear. "I know this is a shock for most all you, for it was a shock to me too." silence greeted his attempt at humour, he cleared his throat self-consciously and continued. "However I was sent here to do a job and I will do that to the best of my ability. I give you my word."

"Your word means nothing to us." a male voice called out from the back.

There were low murmurs of agreement from the gathered citizens.

Ignacio nodded. "I don't blame you for thinking that way, considering my previous actions. But that's all changed. To that end I would like to call all citizens together in two days for a forum. A forum where everyone can have a say on what should be done to improve Los Angeles, to make a safe place to raise our children, a place we can be proud of." he paused and caught Victoria's sceptical gaze.

"Senorita, I would be most grateful if I can use your tavern for the forum."

Victoria was surprised to say the least, he had never before asked to use her tavern. Usually he would simply assume the tavern was his personal meeting hall. "Si, of course."

"Gracias senorita, if everyone could please spread the word, so that as many people can attend."

With a slight bow, Ignacio turned and escorted his family towards their quarters.

The whisperings began as the citizens watched their Alcalde cross the plaza.

"I didn't know that he was married." Victoria said.

Diego shook his head. "No, he wasn't. She is a beautiful woman."

"Si, she is, somewhat older but still beautiful." Don Alejandro added.

Victoria looked directly at Diego. "I want to know the real reason that he is back and what about Zorro?" she whispered.

He shrugged. "If he wanted to arrest me, he would have already done so. Perhaps he really has changed his ways and wants to do right by us."

Don Alejandro snorted. "Well it will take more than words to persuade me of that."

Diego nodded and stared thoughtfully after his old university colleague. "Yes, sometimes actions do speak louder than words."

Victoria grabbed his arm. "Don't you dare... you wouldn't!" her heart pounded, now that she knew, she didn't want anything to happen to the man she loved.

He smiled down at his lady and shook his head. "No querida, there's no need for that."

* * *

"That went well Ignacio." Carolina said as they crossed the dusty plaza.

He nodded. "Si, it did." he paused, then grinned. "I don't think I've seen them so surprised as I did just now."

She chuckled. "Si, even if the King himself stepped out, they would not have been so astounded."

They reached the door of their new quarters. "It's small." Ignacio warned as he opened the door and allowed Carolina and Juanita to enter first.

He was right, Carolina thought to herself as she looked around the cramped quarters. The main bedroom was taken up by the large four poster bed, and a side table, the bathroom was off to one side, was only large enough for a porcelain tub and a wash stand. She opened a second door and frowned at the mess it was in. It was full of boxes, old steel cabinets, stacks of papers, along with a lot of dust and cobwebs.

"Ah, we used this as a storeroom." Ignacio said almost apologetically.

"I'm not staying in there." Juanita protested.

"We'll clear out the mess and turn into a lovely room for you." Carolina told her daughter.

"But its small." the girl whined.

"Juanita." her mother said in a warning tone.

"But..." she persisted.

"No buts, young lady. There is nowhere else for you to stay."

"Why don't you see if Sergeant Mendoza is bringing our things" Ignacio said.

Juanita gave a loud sigh and left the room.

Ignacio chuckled at the sight of his pouting daughter, she reminded him of himself at that age. "I am proud of her, even though..." he stopped as he gazed at his wife.

Carolina placed her hand her husband's chest. "I know you are. I was quite surprised at how easily the two of you connected."

He lifted her hand and placed a soft kiss to her warm skin. "So am I. I just wish I could..."

"I know, I wish you could as well. But I do have some news that you will be pleased about." she smiled and placed his hand on her stomach. "You can claim this one as yours."

Ignacio felt his jaw drop. "Dios...you'rr...isn't it too soon to know..."

She shook her head. "No, not really. We have been married for two months. You're going to be a father."

"Dios." was all he could say. He was going to be a father and this time, the child will bear his name. He gazed into his wife's eyes and saw her happiness.

"I want to give you a son Ignacio." she said.

"But it could be another girl."

Carolina nodded. "Will that matter?"

"Of course not." he replied.

She raised an eyebrow.

He smiled sheepishly. "Okay, I can't deny that I would be pleased by a son but a girl would be welcome too."

There was a bustle at the door as Mendoza and two lancers brought in their luggage, with Juanita following them.

"Thank you Sergeant." Carolina smiled.

"De nada Senora."

"Mendoza, we will need to clear this room out to turn it into a room for Juanita." Ignacio commented.

Mendoza nodded. "Si, Alcalde, we'll make it into a lovely room for the senorita." he smiled as the young girl, who smiled back.

"I'll see it to Alcalde."

"Gracias Sergeant." Carolina said again.

Mendoza nodded and left. He was pleased by the respect he was being shown but he was wary at the same time. He knew what de Soto was capable of.

"Ignacio, where will Juanita sleep tonight? I don't think the room with be ready by this evening."

He nodded. "I don't believe it will either." he paused as he had an idea. "If you agree, perhaps we can let Juanita stay at the tavern."

"The tavern, you can't be serious. Juanita is only eleven!" Carolina replied heatedly.

"Carolina, Senorita Escalante runs a very respectable tavern, she doesn't tolerate any bad behaviour, of any kind."

She gazed at her husband and knew that he would never place their daughter in danger but a tavern, anything could happen. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Juanita bouncing excitedly on her toes.

"Please mama, I promise to be good." she pleaded. She was excited to stay overnight at a tavern all on her own, away from her mother and stepfather.

"I can always post a lancer at the tavern." Ignacio offered, he too saw Juanita's eagerness.

Carolina looked between her husband and daughter and knew that she was outvoted. She sighed. "Alright, alright, you can stay at the tavern for one night only."

Juanita gave a squeal of delight and hugged her mother. "Gracias mama. I promise to be good."

Then she impulsively hugged Ignacio. "Gracias stepfather."

He was too stunned by her unexpected action to reply as she skipped out of the room. His heart flipped in his chest, never before had his daughter hugged him and he felt rather embarrassed as unmanly tears burned his eyes. He cleared his throat. "I better see if Senorita Escalante has a room available."

Carolina hid her smile as he tried to control his emotions. "Of course."

"Senorita Escalante." Ignacio called out as he entered the deserted tavern. It was siesta and he was surprised to find the doors still open. Then he smiled, thinking that she must be in the kitchen. He crossed the floor of the taproom.

"Senorita." he said as he passed through the curtain. He stopped suddenly at the sight of Victoria in a passionate embrace with Diego. The couple pulled apart rather guiltily.

"My apologies Senorita, Don Diego, I'll wait outside." he grinned as backed out of the kitchen.

Victoria and Diego followed moments later.

"Is there something we can help you with Alcalde?" Victoria said politely if somewhat annoyed at the interruption.

Ignacio noticed the blush over her lovely features and thought that Diego was a fortunate man.

He smiled. "I was wondering if you have a room available for tonight."

She nodded and smiled. "Of course, in fact I don't have any guests at the moment."

"Isn't your quarters up to your standard Alcalde?" Diego asked as he leant against the bar.

Ignacio snorted. "They are adequate but unfortunately the room for my stepdaughter is not. We wish for her to stay here tonight, with you, while the room is cleaned out."

Victoria smiled warmly. "She would be most welcome here, she seems like a lovely girl."

He nodded. "She is but Juanita has a mind of her own, so don't take any nonsense from her."

"Congratulations on your marriage, Ignacio." Diego smiled warmly.

Victoria nodded. "Si, it was a surprise to us."

Ignacio chuckled. "No more than me." it was then he noticed a sparkling ring on the Victoria's finger. "I see I need to offer my own congratulations to you both."

Victoria blushed again while Diego wore a large grin on his face. "Thank you Ignacio, you are the first to know."

"Well it's about time you married your tavern wench Diego." he grinned back.

Victoria frowned, she always hated that term. "I need to close up for siesta Alcalde." she saw the amused look the two men exchanged. "You too Diego."

"What, you're kicking me out?" he looked at his fiancée in surprise.

She hid her smile. "Si, I am. Now out both of you." she pushed Diego towards the door.

Ignacio snorted. "Good luck Diego, you will need it." he said as he walked out of the tavern.

"Victoria..."

"Out, out." she pushed him again in the direction of the door.

Diego let her push him but as he reached the door, he turned, captured her hand and placed a soft kiss to her skin. "I love you Victoria."

She gazed lovingly into his blue eyes. "I love you too Diego. Now go."

He chuckled as he left.

* * *

Later that evening, Carolina entered the tavern with her daughter and carried a small bag. The whole tavern was abuzz with the news of the surprised engagement of Victoria Escalante and Diego de la Vega.

Victoria saw Carolina enter and she crossed over to her. "Senora, senorita welcome." she smiled at both of them.

Carolina smiled back. "Gracias senorita. May I offer my congratulations to you and Don Diego."

Victoria blushed. "Gracias senora. I have a room ready for your daughter and its right next to mine. I give you my word that she will be safe here with me."

"Thank you senorita, Ignacio told me that you ran a respectable tavern and I trust his opinion."

Victoria was a little taken aback by this compliment from a man who had never shown any respect for her or for anyone else for that matter. "It's nice to have the good opinion of the Alcalde. Come, would you like me to show you to your room Senorita." she smiled at the young girl.

Juanita looked at her mother, who nodded. "Si".

Victoria led them up the stairs and to the room next to hers.

* * *

The following morning, Carolina walked around the back of the tavern and she heard her daughter giggling. She reached the rear door, which was opened and smiled as she stood silently watching Victoria give her daughter cooking lessons.

Juanita saw her mother out of the corner of her eye. "Mama look, Senorita Victoria is teaching me to cook." she said happily.

Carolina smiled warmly at the younger woman. "I hope you haven't been annoying the senorita in her work."

"Oh no, senora, Juanita has been helping me and is doing very well too."

The young girl beamed with happiness. "Can I stay again?"

"Well, that would be up to your mother." Victoria smiled as Juanita looked to her mother.

"Perhaps one day, you could stay again but we don't want to take up to much of the Senorita's time. Now go get your things."

"Yes mama." she skipped away through the curtains.

"Thank you for allowing my daughter to stay here senorita." Carolina reached into her purse and pulled out several coins and handed it over.

Victoria smiled. "It was a pleasure having her here but please call me Victoria." she replied.

Carolina smiled back. "Gracias, if only you call me Carolina."

The two women smiled at each other as Juanita came back with her bag.

"Say thank you to Senorita Escalante." she urged her daughter to say.

"Thank you senorita for allowing me to stay."

"You're welcome Juanita." Victoria smiled at the young girl.

"Adios Victoria."

"Adios Carolina."

She smiled as she watched them leave.


	16. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

The following day prior to the lunch rush, the tavern was packed with the citizens of Los Angeles and its surrounding area, as well as all the lancers were in attendance. Everyone wanted to know and see what the Alcalde was going to do and say. There was a lot of speculation, a lot of gossip and many felt trepidation for the memories of de Soto's past behaviour was still very fresh in their minds.

Ignacio crossed the dusty plaza with Carolina and Juanita at his side and entered the crowded tavern. The people parted for them and with an encouraging smile from his wife, Ignacio moved to the front of the crowd and called for attention.

"Thank you all for coming today, I know it was short notice and I acknowledge that you have taken this time away from your busy lives." he paused and gazed around at the people he was appointed to rule over. He felt guilty at how he had treated them in the past and hoped to make amends. "I have called this forum together to discuss the best way we can all work together to build this pueblo into something we can be proud of. To that end I want to ask for your opinions, your suggestions on how to do this."

"The best solution would be for you to leave de Soto, we won't accept your oppression of the people anymore." called a loud angry voice from the back of the crowd.

A rumble of agreement circled around the room.

Ignacio raised his hand. "I understand your feelings senor, and I don't blame you for thinking that way. But I have the best intentions of the citizens..."

"A leopard doesn't change its spots." called another male voice.

"We don't trust you de Soto." called a third.

"You never cared about us before, why should we believe you now?" A woman called out.

Diego exchanged a worried glance with his father at the growing hostility in the room and spoke up. "I, for one, would like to hear what the Alcalde has to say."

"So would I." Don Alejandro added.

There were more murmurs at the quiet authority in the de la Vega's voices and the citizens quickly settled down. Everyone respected them and their opinion was valued.

Ignacio nodded his thanks to his former rival, he knew that this meeting could bring out bad feelings and he had no desire to turn it into a public disturbance, where he would be forced to arrest the citizens.

"I understand your anger, of your disbelief that I could change. All I can do is show you how serious I am about making this community better for all. First and foremost, is the safety of everyone. To that end I will be putting our lancers through a rigorous training program to ensure their fitness for duty. It will entail their general fitness, riding, the use of firearms – both muskets and pistols. I intend that all lancers can shoot straight and hit their targets each and every time they fire their weapons. And to help me with this training schedule, I have requested a drill instructor from the garrison at Monterey to provide the training. Sergeant Major Condolez will be arriving tomorrow."

There was a buzz of mutterings at this news. "What about Sergeant Mendoza? Will he have to do this training too."

Ignacio nodded. "All lancers will go through the training and if any of them don't pass muster, then they will be out of the military."

The buzz became louder. "But you can't do that!"

"Yes I can." Ignacio raised his voice sternly. "These lancers are in the Spanish Army and are required by law to ensure a certain level of fitness for duty. Perhaps you are not fully aware of the requirements of the military but everyone is expected to be fit for duty and punishment is strict. I should know, as I was in the Army myself for almost nine years and I can tell you that none of our lancers would have passed muster at any other posting. They have had a very lax time here in Los Angeles, which is my fault and I accept that but it is time to change. I will also start recruiting, for the garrison is under strength by at least half the amount of lancers required for our area." He paused to let everyone chatter for a moment.

"Will you be forcing young men into the Army."

Ignacio shook his head. "No, it will be voluntary and will open for men from age eighteen and older."

Diego was pleased by this news, he had longed for better trained lancers, so that they could take over the job of catching outlaws and not leaving that job to Zorro, which he occasionally still did. Although he no longer appeared in the pueblo, he would capture and leave the bandits, thieves near the wooden sign, for Mendoza and his lancers to pick up. The citizens were aware that Zorro was still protecting them..

Ignacio continued "I would like any and all suggestions from you. Tell me what you need, what would you like to see happen."

Everyone glanced at each other warily, they didn't feel confident to speak their minds.

"I'm sure you all have opinions. If I don't know, I won't be able to fix it." he urged them to speak.

"Well, I would like to see the streets are better maintained, there are too many ruts in them and when it rains, the puddles are deep and dangerous." Victoria spoke up.

Ignacio nodded. "I agree completely Senorita. I would like to fix the roads but also the public buildings that are in need of repair. I believe the walls of the mission chapel needs patching in several places and from the looks of it, the stones along the well in the plaza, needs replacing."

There were many nods of approval.

"We need a new teacher." called a senora sitting behind Don Alejandro.

"Si, we do, we haven't had a teacher for months now." a gentleman called out.

"Yes, our children need to learn to read and write so they can better themselves." a third voice called out.

"And the school isn't big enough now, we have a growing community."

There were many agreements to this and Ignacio was pleased as he held up his hand for silence.

"That's a very good suggestion, we will make that one of our priorities. I will send a letter to the Monterey newspaper and advertise for a teacher to come here..."

"If I may Ignacio, I have a suggestion." Carolina spoke up.

He nodded as Carolina stood up and turned to the gathered crowd. "I know how important education is for our children and future children. We have a tutor that travels with us for Juanita and Senora Torres will be arriving tomorrow. Perhaps she would be willing to take up the position as teacher for the entire pueblo and not just for Juanita. I can ask her, if you wish."

Again there were murmurs of agreement. "Thank you Senora de Soto, that would be wonderful of you to do that." a senora called out.

"De nada, senora, I wish to help where I can." Carolina smiled.

Ignacio felt a rush of pride at how his wife handled the crowd. He shouldn't be too surprised by her ability, after all Vincente had been the Spanish Ambassador and she would have hosted many parties on behalf of her husband.

Don Alejandro spoke up. "We could use another doctor Alcalde. No offence Doctor Hernandez."

Doctor Hernandez chuckled. "None taken Don Alejandro, I could use the help of another doctor, I'm not as young as I once was."

There was laughter at this as Ignacio nodded. "Good suggestion Don Alejandro. Anything else?"

Some silence followed when someone at the back said. "What about a new sign? We lost it last week in that wind storm."

"And what about new paint for all buildings."

"What about the stables, that's common property, it needs a new roof."

Ignacio nodded and took note of each of the comments.

"Who is going to pay for all of this?" Diego spoke up and almost immediately the crowd became silent, all wanting to know if de Soto would be raising taxes.

Ignacio hid his smile, trust Diego to get to the heart of the matter. "You ask a good question Don Diego and it deserves an honest answer. The works for the military, including extending the barracks, will be paid out of the military budget. The repairs to public buildings will come out of the public purse..."

"Will you be raising any taxes?"

He shook his head. "Not unless I have to. Each quarter, we received funds from Monterey to run the pueblo and I can use these funds as I see fit. I agree to fix the public buildings, roads and the mission chapel, but I require something in return..."

"Ah, here it comes." a male voice called out.

Ignacio shook his head and grinned. "I see you are sceptical about my intentions senor."

The man snorted. "Of course. What do you want from us?"

"I will provide the materials to fix these and other items, as long as you provide the labour."

There was stunned silence in the tavern.

"You want us to work Alcalde." Diego said.

He nodded. "Si that is what I want. The budget that I receive isn't large enough for all these public works and to cover labour costs at the same time. It's either that or I will be forced to tax the citizens to pay for labour."

Everyone started talking all once and Ignacio let them talk, he gazed at Carolina and saw her warm smile. She was proud of him, he had changed so much from the time they first met. He was no longer the arrogant, ruthless man, who had only thought of himself, just as she had once done. They both had changed, they put the needs of the community ahead of their own ambitions.

Don Alejandro stood up and the crowd hushed. "I agree in principle to your plan Alcalde, and believe it will bring our community together like no other gathering could do. We would be all helping to build Los Angeles into a stronger place to live. I would be willing to let any of my vaqueros help build or repair public buildings, as I would be, along with my son."

"You would personally help Don Alejandro?" Don Ricardo asked.

Don Alejandro nodded. "Si, I would. Of course I don't have any experience with masonry but I can put together fences and even lend a hand painting."

The crowd considered the older man and his approval for the plan and they began to talk about amongst themselves once more.

"Thank you Don Alejandro." Ignacio said. He knew that if he didn't get the approval from the de la Vegas, he would have no real hope of getting through his plan.

Don Alejandro nodded. "As long as you live up to your side of the bargain and to pay for the materials without taxing the people."

"I will. I have to prioritise which item is more important." he replied thoughtfully as he turned to face the crowd once more. "You don't have to decide right now. I will call another meeting a week from today and together we will decide on the future of our puebl.o" he paused, turned his gaze to Victoria. "Thank you, Senorita, for the use of your tavern."

"De nada." she replied, still shocked at his consideration.

"If you have any questions or have other suggestions, my door is open to you." he bowed slightly to the crowd, gathered up his wife and daughter and left an astonished crowd behind as he walked out of the tavern.

The citizens were silent as they all stared at each other in disbelief, no-one could believe what they had just heard, nor could they believe that de Soto was serious about his plan for the pueblo. They all wanted to know what the catch was. Then suddenly everyone started to speak and the tavern erupted into loud chatter as they expressed their opinions of de Soto's strange behaviour. In the end they decided to wait and see.

* * *

To their amazement and delight, Ignacio de Soto kept his word and over the following weeks and then months, the pueblo of Los Angeles came to life. The streets were levelled out, the buildings were repaired and new paint was applied, a brand new sign was raised over the main entrance. Senora Torres had agreed to be the new teacher for all the children in the district and the schoolroom was extended. He recruited a young doctor to help Hernandez with his practice and a number of new families moved into the area, including a blacksmith who took over the shop left idle when Senor Gomez died, some three months prior.

The lancers had been trained by Sergeant Major Condolez, with only the loss of three lancers, including the popular Sergeant Mendoza. It had been a hard decision but the good Sergeant had not passed the training, so de Soto had to retire him out of the military. The citizens did not like this decision and many grumbled that it was unfair but Mendoza accepted the judgement with good grace and in fact, he had been offered the management of the tavern, since Victoria was soon to be married. In the end it had worked out for the best.

The citizens had come to realise that their Alcalde had indeed changed and that he only had their best intentions at heart, he worked hard for them, any issues they had, be it small or large, he was always available to resolve them. The people saw the love he had for his beautiful wife and stepdaughter and in the end the citizens of Los Angeles came to respect him.

Ignacio never felt so contented in his entire life. His love for his wife and daughter and their coming child was boundless. He never knew such a life of peace could exist. All his life had been about him, about his ambitions, about his needs. He never cared about anyone's feelings except his own and therefore he never realised what he had been missing for all his thirty-seven years. He had craved power at any cost but what he really craved for was respect.

He realised that respect doesn't come from bullying or from being selfish and callous but from consideration for others, for their needs and their concerns. He noticed that the de la Vegas were highly respected by, not only the entire community but also by well connected people in Madrid. The de la Vegas received that respect, not by harassing the people or by oppressing them but by showing that they cared for the people, that they treated everyone the same, whether they are poor peasants or wealthy caballeros.

He knew the old saying was true - to have respect you have to show respect. And in showing respect to the citizens of Los Angeles, he gained their respect. It was slow at first, for he had to gain their trust and once he had gained that, the respect came.

Now as he walked across the plaza, he was greeted with genuine smiles, not the guarded looks that he once received and it lifted his spirits, it gave him a sense of purpose in life. And it all had started the moment the Emissary came to Los Angeles and he saw the monster that he could become.


	17. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

It was seven months to the day that he arrived back in Los Angeles when Ignacio received news that would change his life once more. He was in the tavern, eating lunch with his former rival, Don Diego and his bride Doña Victoria; the couple had married a month prior to a packed mission chapel full of well wishes.

"How is Carolina?" Victoria asked as she sat next to her husband.

Ignacio smiled. "She is resting at the moment, she is tired and I think she would like it to be over with."

Victoria smiled back. "She is due soon, isn't she?"

He nodded and let out a sigh. "Si, any day now, I will become a father." he shook his head. "I never really believed that I would marry and have children."

Diego snorted. "I know that feeling all too well Ignacio."

Ignacio turned his gaze to the younger man. "I guess you would at that."

The two men shared a look of understanding.

Just then there was a commotion outside the tavern. Mendoza, who was standing at the doorway, called out. "Alcalde, I believe you should come and see this."

Ignacio nodded as he stood and up crossed the room to the doors.

Diego, Victoria and others followed.

Outside they found a dusty horseman. "Are you the Alcalde?" he said.

"Si, I am the Alcalde. Can I help you?"

The rider nodded. "Si, I am here to tell you about the change of government." he wheezed. He had travelled fast and needed to get the news to all pueblos that he can reach.

Ignacio frowned. "What do you mean a change of government?"

"Mexico has declared her independence and is now claiming all of California for Mexico."

There were mutterings of surprise and concern at this news as the rider continued. "Behind me are the troopers of Mexico and they will arrive tomorrow to assume command of this pueblo."

"What, they can't assume command." Ignacio fumed.

"Actually they can, and they will. Your authority is no longer legitimate. You will be required to leave this territory or face the consequences. I don't have time to explain in detail, as I must continue on. Adios senor." he rode off.

After the rider left, there were low mumblings in the gathered crowd.

"What does this all mean?"

"What about the King, surely he won't abandon us."

"We don't have a king anymore."

"Will there be a war?"

"Did you know about this Ignacio?" This last question was from Diego.

Ignacio turned and nodded. "There have been rumours of a Mexican breakaway for the some time now but I never really expected it to occur."

"What will it mean for you?"

Ignacio snorted. "Well, obviously I will no longer be your Alcalde and it's more than likely that I will have to return to Spain."

"But you don't know that for a fact." Diego persisted.

Ignacio shrugged. "No but I can't imagine that the Mexican government will allow a foreign appointee to continue in the position, nor will I seek to serve in their government. My loyalties are to Spain."

* * *

The following morning, the plaza was crowded with the citizens, all wanting to see what would happen when the Mexican troops arrive. They didn't have to wait long as a column of blue and white clad troopers rode up, with an older man leading them, wearing well tailored clothes.

He dismounted. "I'm Senor Alberto Mayte. I believe that you have heard that Mexico is now the legal government of California and I am to take over this pueblo for the time being while the postings are settled in Mexico City. Is your Alcalde here?"

Ignacio stepped out. "Ignacio de Soto at your service Senor."

The two men shook hands. "I am here to relieve you of your command Senor de Soto, my papers." Mayte handed over the papers which Ignacio read with concern.

After a moment he looked up. "These papers are authentic, I have no reason to believe otherwise. I will not defy these orders."

Mayte nodded and smiled. "Gracias Senor, I appreciate your honesty. I will try to make the transition trouble-free as possible. However there is one matter I must advise you of..."

Ignacio nodded and smiled knowingly. "You require me to return to Spain."

Mayte had the good grace to look uncomfortable. "Si senor, my orders are to ensure that you are to leave the pueblo within forty-eight hours. I'm sorry Senor."

Ignacio frowned. "I cannot do that Senor." he turned to Carolina, who came and stood by her husband. "May I present my wife, Senora Carolina de Soto."

Mayte immediately understood why de Soto had refused to leave in two days, his wife was heavily pregnant and if he wasn't mistaken, due at anytime. "Senora, my apologies for this bad timing." he bowed slightly

"It is okay Senor, may I ask if we can stay for several weeks before we return to Spain." Carolina asked graciously, as she unconsciously rubbed her large swollen stomach.

Mayte thought hard, he had his orders but it didn't take into account this kind of situation.

"Senor Mayte, I will not allow my wife to travel in her condition and I will not leave her behind either. I will stay here as a ordinary citizen, I will make no demands or cause any trouble for the new government." Ignacio stated firmly.

Mayte was not an uncaring man, he had a family of his own and he knew that if the positions were reversed, he would not leave his wife either. "Very well Senor, you and your family can stay until it is safe for you to travel. I will take a room in the tavern, while you can stay in your quarters."

Carolina gave him a warm smile. "Gracias Senor."

Mayte smiled back. "If I didn't, my wife would make my life a misery."

She chuckled. "Yes, we can do that to our husbands."

Ignacio snorted and he shared a knowing look with Mayte.

* * *

Four days later a very anxious Ignacio was pacing the floor of the tavern, his wife was in labour and he was concerned. Concerned because of her age, she had just turned forty-two and it was dangerous for a woman her age to have a child. He was also worried about what kind of father he would be. His own father wasn't the kind, loving man that Don Alejandro was to his son. He knew that part of his ruthlessness and bad behaviour came from his father, from his own indifferent childhood but he would raise his own child differently. They would raise their child with love and respect, just as Carolina had raised Juanita.

"Dios, how long does it take?" he wailed as he crossed the floor for the hundredth time.

Just then Doctor Hernandez came in with a large smile on his face "Senor de Soto..."

Ignacio turned. "Doctor, is everything okay?"

He grinned. "Yes senor, everything is fine. Your wife has delivered a boy."

Ignacio staggered and if it wasn't for the chair that caught his fall, he would have dropped to the floor. "A son, I have a son..."

Doctor Hernandez nodded. "Si, a healthy boy."

"Dios and Carolina...is she okay?" his voice shook slightly.

The doctor smiled reassuringly. "Yes, your wife is doing fine. You can go and see her now."

Ignacio stumbled to his feet. "I have a son." he said again.

"Congratulations Ignacio." Diego grinned.

"Gracias Diego." he said with a grin of his own as they shook hands.

"Well don't you think you better go." Victoria giggled, she had never seen him so flustered before.

"What...what...oh yes, thank you." Ignacio shook his head and walked briskly out of the tavern.

Ignacio opened the door to their quarters quietly and slipped inside the room. He saw his beloved wife sitting up in bed, with a small bundle in her arms. "Ignacio, come and see our son." she smiled at him.

He moved closer to the bed and eased himself down gently on the mattress. "Dios, he's so small." he whispered as he gazed down at his son. His heart melted completely at the tiny babe.

Carolina chuckled. "He will grow soon enough. Have you decided on a name yet?"

Ignacio slowly reached out and touched the soft fine hair on his child's head. "I was thinking Sebastian or Xavier or Felix."

"Oh I like Felix, Ignacio. We are lucky to have him. You know that I should not have any more children."

"Si, I know. And I was fortunate not to lose you both." he planted a gentle kiss to her head. "Felix it is."

"Ignacio meet your son, Felix de Soto Chavez."

"Hola Felix." he gently placed a soft kiss to his son's head.

* * *

A month later, the citizens had gathered in the plaza to bid farewell to Ignacio, Carolina and their children. They had come to respect him and the pueblo had flourished under his rule. He stood in front of the crowd by the coach that would take them to San Diego, where they would catch the next ship back to Spain.

"Citizens, it is time to say goodbye for the final time." he paused then grinned. "But who knows, you may not have seen the last of me yet."

There were a few chuckles at this comment

"I have been honoured by my time here in Los Angeles and I will never forget you, as I am sure that you will never forget me. I returned to Los Angeles with a plan, a plan to make this pueblo a place to be proud of and I believe that I have accomplished that. But I could not have done it without your help, without your respect. I leave this flourishing pueblo in good hands of Senor Mayte."

There were cheers at his words and many of the citizens came up to them and gave them best wishes for the future.

"Good luck Ignacio, in whatever you do." Diego said as he held out his hand.

"Gracias Diego" they shook hands for the last time.

"Goodbye Carolina." Diego bowed slightly to the lovely woman, carrying her son in her arms.

She smiled. "Goodbye Diego."

Victoria came up to Ignacio, who bowed his head. "I never did apologise for my behaviour Doña Victoria. I am truly sorry for everything."

"You know, I believe you really are." she smiled.

He smiled back. "I wish you all the happiness Victoria." he kissed her hand.

"You too Ignacio."

She turned to Carolina and hugged the older woman. "I will miss you and Juanita and this gorgeous baby." she said.

"And I will miss you Victoria."

* * *

Thirty minutes later they were well on their way to San Diego, when Carolina settled Felix more comfortably in her arms and turned to her husband. "Ignacio, do you have any idea what we will do when we get back to Madrid, will you get another posting?"

He shrugged. "I'm not sure but I would like to spend some time together as a family first." he stared down at his son asleep in his mothers arms. He still had ambition, he still wanted another posting but his ambitions had been tempered with compassion and understanding. "I hope to get another posting but whatever happens, I want us to be together. You, me, Juanita and Felix."

Carolina nodded. "Si, we are family Ignacio, that's all that matters."

He nodded thoughtfully. "Yes, that is what life is really about isn't. It's taken me all this time to understand, that life is about family and friends. It's not about accumulation of things or by how much power or authority that someone may have, but it's about love, it's about how you live your life."

Ignacio stared into her warm eyes and felt his heart melt with his strong love for her. "I do love you Carolina."

"I love you too Ignacio." she replied softly as she felt her own heart flutter at the love that poured from him.

Juanita let out a sigh and rolled her eyes at the sight of her mother and stepfather making eyes at each other. It was bad enough that they showed their feelings in the privacy of their quarters but to display it in public was disgraceful. But deep down, she was happy for her mother, for her father had never shown the kind of love that Ignacio showed her mother. She had always thought that her mother was sad somehow but it wasn't until Ignacio married her, did she really see a change in her mother, she saw her happiness.

Ignacio and Carolina shared a look of understanding at their daughter's actions but neither of them scolded her, for they knew that although she might be exasperated by the open display of emotions, Juanita was happy for them. She had come to love her stepfather, almost as much as she loved her father.

They had indeed become a family.

* * *

THE END


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